Daughter Of The Gods
by steelehart
Summary: After Ozpin was created the brothers realized that it would not be enough, so they created a girl, powerful in the magical arts, who would aid their champion in any way possible. The only problem? She's immortal, forever stuck in the body of an 18 years old. For a thousand years she waits before the perfect opportunity arises
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth. Also, this story was inspired in part by the recent episodes of RWBY (so spoilers there), and an excellent fanfiction called 'the immortal maiden' by ravenrose8.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter one: The beginning**

I wasn't born, per se. I was created by my fathers. Why, I wasn't sure, but I suspected it was important. I was barely aware of my existence before one of my fathers spoke.

"Child, open your eyes." He commanded. I did as he said and looked upon the faces, or rather lack, of my fathers. They were brothers, I somehow knew. The older one was taller, and despite not having a face, seemed to be the gentler of the two. He was tall and had the horns of a woodland animal upon his head. A buck maybe. His 'skin' was yellow, and he spoke in a calming voice.

"My brother and I created you so that you may watch over our final experiment." He explained.

"What experiment are you talking about? The humans?" I asked. The younger brother looked at me and nodded. I looked back to the older and he continued.

"Your role will be to protect the relic of destruction. There are things our champion doesn't understand In Anyone's hands they could rule over the world we have created. It will not be an easy task. But your most important is to keep the champion under watch, and when the time is right, aid them." Great, I was a glorified baby sitter.

"You think this unfair?" The god of destruction asked.

"Yes, I do." I said as a matter of fact.

"Too bad." They both said, and with a flick of their wrists, I was cast out of the pocket dimension. But they had done something. A voice echoed in my head.

"You are an immortal with incredible power. The winds chase you and the lightning cannot catch you. Your eyes give you sight of all threats, even the darkest of my creations." The voice of destruction whispered, and I collapsed onto my knees.

'I didn't ask to be made, to be given this power' I thought bitterly when I heard creation whispering in my head.

"Guide them however you wish, in secret or not, in goodness or not, the choice is yours. We are never returning here, but we have left four relics behind. Knowledge, creation, destruction, and choice. You must protect destruction from all threats." The elder god whispered, and a sword manifested in my hands.

'well that's dramatic' I thought. The winds blew towards me and a smile grew on my face. Getting to my feet I started running. Pushing faster and faster I dug deep into myself and ran. I heard a crack behind me as I ran and another and another. I ran for what felt like seconds and finally stopped miles away. I was in front of a village when the wind from my running faster than sound finally caught up. It blew past me knocked over several small huts and people. Thankfully nobody was hurt but I did feel bad that I had caused this.

Walking under the archway into town I jogged over to the nearest villager. She stared at me with old eyes surrounded by wrinkled skin, and when she looked down I realized I wasn't wearing any clothes. Blushing, I covered myself with my hands the best I could. The woman took pity on me and handed me her cloak. It was green, and didn't feel right, but I accepted it graciously.

"Who are you?" the woman asked. I didn't know, my creators had never given me a name. I shrugged my shoulders and she seemed to think for a moment.

"Well, I think I'll call you scarlet since your face turned bright red when I saw you." She said with a laugh. I nodded. The name fit well enough I supposed.

"Can you speak?" she asked.

"Yes." I croaked out. "I am…sorry about your dwelling." I apologized. I hadn't known I could do that.

"How did you do that anyway?" she asked astonished. I somehow knew that before the brothers left, they took the magic they had gifted to humans back when they revolted. I hoped these humans knew nothing of the magic I possessed.

"I ran really fast." was the only explanation I gave. She looked at me amazed, not even caring anymore that I had destroyed her dwelling place. Not wanting to trouble this woman any further, I set the sword I forgot I was carrying on the ground and took the cloak off. She declined.

"Keep it." she said. nodding, I put it back on my shoulders.

"I cannot begin to repay you, as I have no money, but I will rebuild if you would allow me too." I offered the woman. She nodded and I sped around the ruined remains of the dwelling and gathered up anything that could be useful. There wasn't much, mostly wood and the bed this woman slept on, but I decided it should be enough. I gathered everything up into a pile when I realized I had nothing to put these together. The woman stepped forward holding tools in her hands. I thanked my creators that I had knowledge of this world in my head.

Getting to work, I rebuilt the dwelling using my speed, and she watched with wide eyes as the hut was finished. It wasn't anything spectacular as I modeled it after the other huts, and when I was finished, I saw that I had drawn a crowd. Other people looking at me like I was a gift form the gods. Praying to me to rebuild their dwellings as well. Out of guilt I worked through the night to fix the other dwellings that had been destroyed.

Nobody seemed to realize that I was the reason behind the sudden wind. All the villagers blamed it on the gods and praised me for my work in rebuilding. In their gratefulness they asked me to stay, and hesitantly I accepted.

Over the next few years I stayed with the old woman, and lived as scarlet rose, working in the village but never disclosing my secret. I protected it from the creatures people called grimm and my fame grew.

'The slayer', 'lady eternal', The undying one…the eternal rose, people called me. I was called to many villages over the years to defend them and destroy hoards, kill conquering armies, put down revolutions. But through it all I couldn't use the power of my eyes that the younger brother had given me for fear the people would deify me. Not like they didn't try.

I didn't want to be a god or rule these people. They needed to make their own rules and live by them.

When the old woman died she gave me the house to stay in, and so I stayed there for years before the older villagers began asking questions. They knew I wasn't quite right, that I never aged because I had been granted immortality. And so, I did the only thing I could do.

I died.

Well not really, but I assumed the identity of my 'daughter' and claimed my 'mother' had died. Scattered to the wind, like rose petals. The people seemed to believe it as they mourned with me for the loss of such a great woman. When people asked where I'd been I told them my mother had left me at another village with my 'father' as she traveled. As he was unwilling to leave the village, I stayed with him.

And so, the cycle continued for nearly two hundred years. As I never really wanted to make friends or associate with the humans, I was alone. In order to avoid as much suspicion as possible, I would travel to distant lands and return several years later as my own daughter, a different name for the color of red as per 'family tradition' and each generation of villagers forgot my 'mother' as time went on. Sometimes a slightly different appearance. Just the way I liked it.

Don't get me wrong, I still helped people, but I did it more from the shadows. Dashing into battles of human and grimm as fast as I could go without hurting people, a streak of red or white was all people could see. It was during one of these battles where I made my discovery.

There was another with power like mine. She told me of others, people able to wield their gifts and use them to protect people. I had no idea the gods made more like me, just without the eternal life. When I expressed this to her she became confused.

'No' she told me 'our power is the manifestation of our soul' she explained. The gods hadn't told me that. Maybe this was natural!

"You said there are others!" I asked. I had to know who these people were.

"of course! Three other girls and another guy. He's a faunus though so I hope that won't be a problem." She finished.

"What the hell's a faunus?" I asked. She gave me a funny look and I explained I'd never seen them in the villages I protected. She understood and explained. Faunus were humanoids with animal characteristics. How odd. What was less odd and more unacceptable was that they were slave labor. Seen as sub human. I began to refuse even associating with these people if they treated their male faunus companion like that. She denied it, said he was free.

"Are there any more or is it just the five of you?" I asked suddenly. If this was natural why didn't everyone have power like this? A semblance? Aura, as the girl called it.

"Everyone has Aura. They just don't know how to use it or unlock it." She explained.

"Why don't we teach them?" I asked. She looked at me like I'd given her the answers to the universe!

"That's a great idea! Then we don't have to travel as much! We have to tell the others about this!" She took my hand and started dragging me down the road but I pulled back.

"I don't even know your name!" I said, she turned around with a goofy smile.

"Of course. Silly me. My name is Indigo. Indigo Belladonna. My husband is Ash Belladonna, the faunus I mentioned earlier." She explained. I could sense she kept her husband secret because she was afraid of how I would react, and likely kept it secret until we got to wherever we were going. "What's your name?" She asked.

"My name is Vermillion." I said simply. Indigo held out her hand. Even after all this time I still thought the human custom of handshaking was weird. I didn't know why, but I felt like I would be sad to watch her grow old.

We traveled back to the town of vale, a lot bigger than the tinier villages I had been traveling to. It was easy to get lost here and I found myself thinking that I would hide and stay here next. More people meant less attention. We walked on through the smooth dirt streets before Indigo lead me down a side street where she knocked on a door with an irregular pattern. A code of some sort?

The door opened and a girl with red hair opened the door. She eyed me suspiciously for a moment before indigo nodded and led me inside. It was spacious, much bigger than the ones I had made in the little village centuries ago. There were a lot of candles, which I thought was a fire hazard, that created warm light inside. All in all it was a cozy dwelling.

"So, this is our house. We all came together to form our little group and in the interest of protecting the villages surrounding Vale. I must confess that my running into you was not coincidence." She said as she looked away. These people had been looking for me? Watching me? I began to pull my sword out and destroy them. Indigo reached forward in desperation.

"Please, let me explain!" She pleaded. I put my sword back in the sheath but kept my hand on the pommel, implying to them that if they tried anything, I was ready. She took a deep breath.

"We are very powerful people, it's true. With our Aura's and Semblance's we wield power other people don't posses and they look to us to fight the grimm for them. We cant be everywhere and we need help. When we heard about a young woman with incredible speed I came to ask for your help, but you have given me a better idea." She said in a breathless voice. "If we teach the people about their aura's and semblance's then we don't have to run ourselves ragged anymore." She finished. Her eyes were begging me to understand.

I studied them all for a few moments. The light blue-haired Indigo Belladonna and her husband Ash, a girl with orangey-red hair, another with green, and another with purple. What a peculiar set of colors. If the tips of my own locks weren't secretly red underneath the solid black dye, I would think it was unnatural. Maybe it had something to do with aura?

A study for another time I suppose.

Coming to a decision I looked them in the eyes.

"I'll help you, but I have some conditions and secrets that can never be revealed." I spoke gravely. There was a dark promise to anyone who revealed my secret. For some reason I knew I could trust them. Maybe it was my power, or the magic in my eyes, or maybe even it was my own instincts, but whatever it was I trusted them.

"Swear to me upon my blade that you will keep this secret with your lives." I said as I withdrew destruction from her sheath. She hummed with promised power as she was held steady in the air. Each of the girls touched it immediately. Only Ash hesitated for the briefest second before he too placed his hand upon the blade.

"We swear." They spoke in unison. Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself before speaking.

"I'm immortal." No sense in pussyfooting around the issue. They looked at me in fear.

"Like the dark queen? From the stories?" a timid voice asked. I looked towards the youngest of the friends, the purple haired one.

"No..?" I hoped me trailing off would make the purple haired girl realize I didn't know her name.

"Lavender Goodwitch." She said quietly. Moving toward her slowly I took her face in my hands. She looked at me with wide eyes.

"No Lavender. I'm not like the dark queen and her husband. I wasn't born. I just…was." I thought it best to not mention the brother gods. "I became aware of my existence almost two hundred years ago. Believe it or not I had no idea who this 'dark queen' was before a kind lady told me the legend."

Their eyes widened as I launched into the story of my first day of existence. By the end the girls all had theories about why, the most ridiculous sounding, although not so ridiculous since I am a child made by gods, was that my speed gave me advanced healing and therefore I couldn't die. It wasn't a terribly wrong theory, I thought. All I could ever respond with was that I didn't know.

"So I know Lavender, Indigo, and Ash. But I don't know either of your names." I said suddenly

"Sage. Just sage." The girl with green hair said.

"I'm Auburn Hess." The orangey-red head.

We traveled the world, aiding villages and teaching people as we went a long about aura and semblances. Some people chose to follow us and other decided to teach even more people. We discovered not everyone could have an aura. Sure, everyone had a soul, but not everyone could project it. A year we traveled all over the world and met many people. A year we walked from town to town and village to village. A year we protected the people from monsters.

A year we did all these things…until Ash died and we discovered Indigo was pregnant.

It was a complete accident. None of us were paying attention and we were lulled into a false security by how good at fighting we had become. Students and challengers alike would ask to spar and test their merit. And in the cases where we lost, we learned, and mastered the fighting style. It was this overconfidence that Ash had gained that was his downfall. A man who thought Ash should be put in his rightful place as a Faunus, back into slave labor, challenged him to a fight. Ash toyed with the man until the man made him angry with a comment about his kind. In Ash's anger he beat the man near to death, and as Ash walked away, so confident he'd one that his aura was down, the man pulled out a knife and stabbed him before anyone could even react.

Indigo rushed forward to catch her husband as he fell, holding him as she reassured him it was going to be okay. I knew that his wound was grave, and that not even the magic I had been gifted could save my friend. I cried as I pounced on the man when he tried to escape, hitting him over and over again, my fists moving so fast they shattered most of his bones in seconds. He collapsed to the ground in a groaning mess of blood and tears before trying to pathetically crawl away in fear of me.

Indigo was still holding her barely conscious husband and crying into his shoulder when Lavender, Sage, and Auburn came up beside me. They grabbed the man by his shoulders and held him down, digging their fingers into areas I hat hit. Standing above him my eyes glowed with the ferocity of a burning star, and reaching slowly, a pulled the relic of destruction free from her sheath. Holding it above his heart as he begged for mercy, I plunged it through him and pinned him to the ground below.

Over the years I found had found out what exactly the relic of destruction could do. This man would join a dozen others. Where he was stabbed began to turn black as he screamed in pain and horror as he watched first his heart disappear, and then the destruction spread to the rest of his body before finally his head was consumed and all was quiet for a second

All that was left was a pile of dust, that scattered when I kicked it in rage.

Indigo let out a wail of anguish and pain. Turning around, Ash was slumped over in her arms, pale and dead. Indigo hit the ground with all her strength and created a crater where she cried. I moved over to her, as did Lavender and Sage, and knelt beside her as we all mourned.

We returned him to his family, who blamed us for his death, saying we filled his head with delusions of grandeur. I held Indigo back before she could attack them.

We were traveling to an isolated village in the land that had become known as the kingdom of Vacuo three weeks later when it became obvious Indigo was pregnant. Indigo being Indigo, she stubbornly refused to stop, saying she needed to keep going as it helped her keep Ash close to her heart. The rest of the girls agreed and we kept traveling.

We were traveling on the road eight months later with Indigo in a cart tied to the horses we had been gifted when it happened.

"Guys!" She said "I think it's happening!" she screamed.

"Really Indi?! You have the worst timing ever!" Auburn shouted before moving to Indigo's side. There wasn't much around as we were between villages.

"Shut it Auby!" Indi screeched.

"You ladies stay here I'll go get help!" I said as ran so fast I practically teleported to socks, my horse. I pushed her hard as we flew down the beaten dirt path. I almost missed the older path that sprouted to the left. Hoping there was somebody there I turned socks down the path and prayed that at the very least there was a settlement with a house.

It wasn't long before I came upon a beat-up shack that looked like it had seen better days. I pulled the handle, but it was locked. Banging on the door I hoped someone would answer, because if nobody answered in two minutes I was breaking in.

It was almost time to break the door when it opened, and I panicked when an old man almost got his face punched in from my lightning punches. Thankfully I had good reaction times.

"What the fuck do you want?" he asked. His brows were furrowed together in anger and a scowl was on his face.

Really? A young (not really) girl was banging on his door in the middle of the night and he thought what? I was selling cookies or trying to rob him. One, if I had cookies I wouldn't share them with him, because he was being a butt face with rude language, two, there was a serious problem at hand.

"Well?" he asked impatiently.

"Please sir, my friends and I were traveling on the road to the village beyond here. One of them is pregnant and she's ready to pop so I would appreciate it if we could come here and-" the old man walked away but left the door open and so I assumed it was a yes so I hopped back on socks and galloped at breakneck speed. Well, breakneck for a horse anyway. Note to self, see if I can speed up a horse.

Grabbing Indigo and putting her on the horse I took off again, leaving behind my three other best friends, after telling them of the shack with the old man.

Picking up Indi bridal style after helping her off the horse, I was surprised to see the grouchy old man waiting by the doorway and pointing towards the small bed, made up with pillows and blankets. He nodded at me and I placed my best friend on the mattress. My hands touched the blanket, it was itchy, but Indi didn't complain even though she hated itchy blankets.

Another contraction hit her and she gripped my hand, and if it weren't for my insane healing, I'd be dealing with several broken fingers by now. She screamed, and squeezed, and kicked in pain until Auburn and the other girls arrived.

The old man muttered about the 'house being too damn small for this' as Auby inspected Indi. There was a little bit more to go, and once again I found myself glad I wouldn't have to deal with broken fingers for very long.

It was almost ten hours later when a baby's crying could be heard. Nobody was asleep and we all watched as a baby boy was born, panther ears, tail, and all. He had Ash's nose and Faunas traits, but the rest was all Indi. She held him as she cried, remembering that her husband couldn't be here to share this.

We stayed for several days while Indi rested with her son, Flint belladonna, and we made sure to repay the kindness the old man had shown us in opening his home.

Sage used her expert gardening skills to plant many things which could grow in the old mans garden. An apple tree, berry bushes, cucumbers, carrots, and cabbages. Auby did work around the house, and lavender sat and talked with the old man who had been by himself for years. I went into town on multiple trips to get food for everybody. By the last day we were there, the old man was laughing and talking and joking with all of us.

I prepared a small feast for us with the table outside. Thankfully Indi was rested enough to join us and the old man was joyous enough and still had plenty of energy to join us as well.

"I have lived many years." He started once we were done with our feast. "And never have I seen such kindness in the people I have encountered." He said with a small smile. "I know you did it out of some sense of repayment, but I sincerely believe you have restored the hope I had lost in humanity." He said lowly. I frowned.

What did he mean by losing hope in humanity. It's awfully specific.

"So, for your kindness I wish to give you four girls a gift." And in his hands, spun four glowing spheres of light. My eyes widened. Everyone had an aura and semblance.

But this…this was magic. I was the only one who was supposed to have it.

'you are to keep the champion under watch.' A voice in my head said, an echo from a bygone age of my life. Was this the champion a was to watch carefully? An old man? Maybe he was immortal like me? For years I had searched for 'the champion' but always assumed it had been the dark queen from legend and she had already died. Now I see this might not be the case.

So why was this old man using magic.

I was broken out of my thoughts to see that he had given them intense power. Magic beyond mortal comprehension.

Control over the seasons.

Indi gained the power of winter, a frozen glass of water stood nearby

Auby gained the power of fall, razor sharp leaves flowed around her

Lavender gained the power of summer. A ball of flame in her palm as she experimented

Sage gained the power of spring, life flowed from her very fingertips.

The old man looked at me and frowned. I wondered if he could sense my own magic. I didn't have to wait long for the answer. As we were leaving, Flint and Indi bundled up on the cart since new mother didn't want to ride on the horse with her son just yet, the old man called me into his house.

"What are you?" he asked abruptly. Okay not even going to bother with the formalities.

"you're gonna have to buy a girl a drink first before I spill all my secrets." I said sarcastically. He didn't seem to care as he looked deep into my metallic eyes. You're something more. I don't know what you are, but you have great magic." He said before he released my gaze.

Maybe he wasn't the champion. Maybe he just had magic. Either way I didn't feel comfortable with him. he was a nice man, but I knew there was a dark stain on his soul, and something else?

"I'll ask again. What are you?"

I didn't respond as I pulled the hood of my cloak up and walked out the door. I could feel his stare on me the entire time as I jumped onto socks and we all set down the road.

It was years later when I discovered what exactly the type of power the old man unleashed on the world.

We had been going form towns to cities for the last fifteen years and I had taken up the role of 'sister' to ash, so it wouldn't look weird that a seventeen-year-old girl was traveling with thirty-year-olds. This time I was cardinal rose.

Auby and I were in the now city of vale, back home for the first time in ages when my magic sensed a dark presence. One of evil intent. I dismissed it because people with dark intentions were hiding in cities all the time.

It would be my biggest mistake.

An explosion went off a block away, and in my haste to save lives, I sped off and left Indi behind thinking she would catch up. I was at the explosion when I heard a gunshot ring out, and then another. Running back to where Auby was, I saw her lying dead in the center of a puddle of blood and a woman standing over her. A gun in her hand.

The wind began to pick up and leaves began to gather, spiraling around her. my eyes widened as she lifted of the ground, laughing maniacally. Orange flames burst out of her eyes small wings and the fire rested in her palms. She continued to laugh and threw fireballs at the innocent people as she floated back down

This couldn't stand. She killed one of my best friends and now threatens innocent people. No. this bitch was going to die. Running faster than sound I reached her in the blink of an eye. Tackling her to the ground, my eyes spewed white flames of their own as I pummeled her as fast as my arms could work. Her aura was amplified by the maiden powers, a title we had taken to calling them, and she just seemed to keep taking it. She pushed me away with a burst of flames, her eyes staring at me.

"I deserve this power!" she shouted at me eyes wide with insanity. "I deserve this after everything these people have taken from me!" she continued ranting.

"I don't give a shit." I spoke coldly. "You killed my best friend you bithc! So now you're going to die!" I ran at her, a blur of silver and orange, which was the color of my cloak this time, and slashed at her with the destruction blade. I missed and she retaliated with sharpened leaves, she smirked when one cut my cheek but her eyes widened when the wound closed up instantly. Aura would still take a few seconds to heal mortals. My eyes glowed brighter in my rage and I charged at her, slashing again and again as I put her on the defense.

In her desperation, she activated a magic that Auby and I had been practicing, a large-scale fire dome. While I wasn't worried about myself, the apartments around us were made of wood and other flammable materials.

The spell fanned out quickly and the houses and everyone inside were destroyed instantly. I underestimated this woman for the las time. Amplifying my semblance with my silver eyed magic it was almost like teleportation I moved so fast. She didn't even notice at first when destruction slipped into her ribs.

Than the screaming and gurgling came. It was pathetic. I pulled my sword out of the unknown killers chest and ran over to Auby. Her face was pale and in her death she looked at peace. I cried into her shoulder with great wracking sobs.

Sage, Indi, and flint must have heard the commotion because the came running into the middle of the destroyed area. Looking around, it was Indi who spotted me first. She was running over to me when she stopped and stared.

I felt a burning in my chest as what could only be magic forced itself into me. It burned greater than any pain I had ever felt, likely due to my silver eyed magic, and when it was done I nearly blacked out. Indi came running up to me and pulled me into her lap as she stroked my hair.

"I'm so-sor-sorry!" I sobbed into Indi's shoulder. "I Cou-couldn't save her and no-now she's dead because of me!" I cried out. My magic still hadn't faded, and I was dimly aware of the orange glow now coming out of my left eye.

The power of fall, a now constant reminder of my failure. A permanent one.

"Shhhhh it's okay." Indi whispered in my ear. "We know you did everything you could." She cooed.

We stayed in the middle of the destruction area for another minute before civilians came out of the woodwork to stare. This wasn't the time or place to mourn anymore.

I picked up Auby and all of us left towards the house we had built on the edge of the city.

"This shouldn't have happened." I muttered to myself, staring at Auby's body, as if looking at it I could will her back to life. But she was still dead, and I still had her magic.

I still had her magic!

"Did the old man say anything else about the magic he gave you girls?"

All three answered no. I frowned. How did I end up with Auby's magic? How did that other lady end up with it?

It transfers! I quickly realized. Magic is volatile and dangerous without a host. Magic without a host can run rampant, almost becoming a life of it's own. So it needed a host. And when the old man gave some of his magic, he turned it into a living being, able to jump from host to host. Then that meant everyone was in danger

"We're done here." I said abruptly. "We gave these people control over their souls! Their semblances! And what do they do!? They kill Auby and try to terrorize inoccents with her magic!" I ranted. The three remaining original maidens looked at me. Flint was watching me in fear.

My eyes were blazing, much larger and more powerful than any of the other three. White and orange flames were mixing together. Quickly I smothered them and leaned on the counter top for support.

"We'll make schools. That way we don't abandon them completely but we aren't going to be going out anymore. Nobody will hurt my family again." They all nodded slowly. They understood my fears. I pulled my hood up and walked out the door.

And so for the next five years we went from one continent to the next, convincing the local governments to build a school, neutral grounds so that students from all over, regardless of city or race could attend and learn to fight the grimm. The first was shade academy. A modest school that could house and train five hundred students every year.

The next we traveled to the kingdom of mantle, which had just formed itself by uniting the cities and their governments under one rule. The school there we named Alsius. It was decided by the government that the Military and huntsman and huntresses would be trained there. We agreed, so long as the academy was open to anyone who was willing.

They agreed.

Next we went to traveled to mistral. The academy there, Haven, was small, since the continent itself was small. A modest three hundred students would graduate from there every year.

Last, but not least we founded Beacon in Vale, who had also decided to become a United Kingdom like Mantle. Beacon became my favorite school, bigger than all the rest and at the top of its tower stood a shining light, hope was represented so long as the beacon was lit, and it was not supposed to ever go out. Beacon could train nearly seven hundred students over four years. It had to be big because Vale was a massive kingdom.

Much to my chagrin and protests, the ruling party of Vale decided to erect a statue in our honor. The girls agreed but I politely declined, it wouldn't do for me to have a permanent face etched in stone around for centuries, letting people know what I looked like for all time.

And so the statue was made, some bonehead had carved my cloak and sword onto the giant statue of Indi. She laughed about it but I wasn't happy. Now everyone would know, even if they didn't really KNOW, what the relic of destruction looked like.

With the academies done we retired. Stopped traveling altogether and just lived quiet lives. Everyone had, funnily enough, started a story about the four maidens.

We all had a good kick out of that. The girls and their powers became bedtime stories for children.

As the years went on the girls got older…I didn't. The first to succumb to old age was Lavender.

We were all by her side when she drew her last breath and watched in awe as the magic left her body, searching out a new host.

Next was sage. Due to her old age, she got sick when she was trying to help the village nearby with an outbreak and had contracted it herself. There was nothing anyone could do.

Next was Indi.

At the ripe old age of one hundred and two she slipped into a deep sleep and never woke up. Before she fell asleep however she made me swear to watch over her family. The grandkids she had. Flint had gotten married, became the first faunus in a position of power as headmaster of beacon, and married another panther faunus. Together they had three beautiful children: two boys and one girl.

I swore I would always protect the family. So long as there was a belladonna on remnant, they would always be looked after.

Another hundred years passed before anything interesting happened. One of the relics, the relic of creation. How did I know it was found?

A literal new continent formed out of the blue.

I was forced to hunt down the person who used it, killed him, and stashed the relic away. deciding that the relics were too powerful, I hid them away behind magical doors so that only magic from myself and another maiden could open them. I thought it was pretty clever since I didn't need another maiden. I didn't trust the militaristic kingdom of Atlas, formerly mantle, so I kept the relic of destruction with me.

Also of note, I guess, is that somebody had been able to track down the spring maiden, a girl by the name of Evergreen and approached her. in her naiveite she introduced the other two maidens. They offered to protect them. Some stupid order of the maidens. I had to admit it would be easier since I hadn't been able to protect the girls every now and again, so I let it slide. Well, after I gave Evergreen a thorough tongue lashing for being so trusting. I chose to never interact with them, for fear they would capture me and try to understand my immortality, maybe even steal it for themselves.

And so, for five hundred years I hid myself away from the world, hoping my interference would never be necessary again. The new maidens would be hidden away once they were found and killed if the magic was stolen by power hungry mortals. I did a little bit of magic on the Relic of destruction and I stowed it away in a pocket dimension that only I could get to. Clever really. I made new swords, twin blades that I could wield with incredible skill and power.

Small wars sprung up hear and there but were easily squashed, two more kingdoms formed, and overall things looked good. Everyone was happy

Except for the faunus. As much as humanity progressed they were always one step backwards with the enslavement of the faunus. So, I got to work. It shamed me that it took this long to do anything

Coming out of hiding for the first time in five hundred years was a little overwhelming honestly. There were huntsman and huntresses everywhere wielding different weapons, some could even change shape!

Why didn't I think of that?!

I pleaded with the kingdoms for two years before I gave up on their bigoted ideology. I hated it, but if the faunus wanted freedom, they would have to fight for it.

For another two years I gathered the faunus, breaking them out of their chains and training them to be an army. Funnily enough, it was where I met General Preto Belladonna and her brother. Shame lanced through my heart when I heard they had been slaves themselves, separated from their family when a small band of warriors took them to sell.

The war for freedom lasted nearly two years before the battle of fort castle, what a stupid name, turned the tide in the faunus' favor. Well…I helped a little. The opposing general was an idiot and attacked at night, which the faunus forces quickly took control of the battle. In his defeat, the general tried to run, but I surrounded him in a ring of fire, allowing Preto to step in, and force him to surrender.

It was the sexiest beatdown I'd ever seen.

A year after that and the war was over. Preto and I became great friends, but I eventually had to tell her the truth four years later when she asked how I looked so good. She handled it surprisingly well all things considered and tried to convince me to stick around. I declined politely.

"I have seen the rise and fall of cities and kingdoms. I've been part of the greatest revolution in human history, gained magic that only three other women can come close to, and I am so tired." I brokenly whispered. If I weren't immortal, I wouldn't have to worry about seeing the woman who had become the only best friend I've had in five hundred years die. But I did have to worry about that. She understood before she perked up with wide eyes.

"Help me find a place for the faunus!" She exclaimed. "There's nowhere for us to go because the other kingdoms won't take us." She explained. I smirked at her and pulled out a map.

"I know just the place." I had kept the new landmass secret and managed to surround it with sea dwelling grimm to keep exploratory ships away. It had worked so far, considering that since it came into existence, only four people had ever been there, and I trusted them all with my life. I had even given them some of my magic, and several hundred years later their offspring had it as well. They became known as the silver eyed warriors. I rolled my eyes just thinking about the stupid title.

Humans and their incessant need to name everything.

Rejoining the present when Preto cleared her throat to get my attention, I unfurled the map and pointed to the area where the landmass should be.

"It's not much because the landmass is mostly desert, and the grimm are also numerous on the other side, but it's land that only the Faunus would have. A nation of your own." I explained to her. Her eyes widened, and she lunged forward to hug me.

I thought I was going to die for the first time ever when it felt like my ribs were going to break from the strength of the hug.

It took another year to get the small continent, now known as menagerie going. I wasn't kidding when I said most of the land was desert and inhabited by grimm. But the faunus fought for every inch of land, just as ferociously as they had for their freedom before eventually deciding they had enough and settled down.

Finally, after nearly a thousand years, it seemed humanity was in a good place.

Until seventy years later when I was in a store buying dust for a trip to menagerie and see Khali, when a man and several goons walked in.

One of them even tried to rob me before he recognized the silver emblem on my red cloak.

"If you leave now all will be forgiven and you can leave with your lives…intact." I said coldly, loud enough for everyone in the store to hear.

"Yes ma'am." The first goon said.

Stepping out of the shadows of the back of the store the other goons did a double take and bowed quickly before they all left.

Except for one, curiously.

"Well it seems that you just can't buy good help anymore." The smug man with the bowler hat said.

"Well you can't buy good help because I OWN the good help." I said forcefully. It wasn't a complete lie, I often hire junior's best men as informants and body guards when I needed to look more intimidating for meetings. Thankfully I was good with my money and always 'Inherited' my 'mother's' wealth.

"Is that so, red?" The man said. He tried to back out of the store, realizing more and more that I wasn't a pushover. Whenever he moved back I moved towards him. eventually he was out of the store when I made my move. I didn't want to kill him, so I held back.

Darting forward I decided to be careful with my current weapon, crescent rose, and slashed towards his chest, intending to knock the wind out of him, but he dodged at the last moment. He tried to use his cane, but I never gave him the chance as I darted forward and slashed again, spinning like a tornado I poured a little of my magic into the air around me, causing a small funnel of air to form.

I danced around the man in the suit with a skill developed over a thousand years. Was I drawing attention to myself? Possibly. But this man was a threat to the peace, and I won't have that.

Activating the fire dust laced on crescent's blade it combined with the small funnel of air to make a fire tornado. Effective? Probably not. Scary as hell? Absolutely! I smirked when the man looked like he shit his pants and discharged his weapon. It sent out a small missile, which I didn't expect and jumped into the air to avoid. Landing down on the ground it appeared that this man had insane speed as well since he was almost up the ladder on a tall building.

Rolling my eyes and putting a serious expression on my face, I poured a small amount of magic into my semblance again and sped towards the man.

"Well this has been fun, but I think this is the end of the line!" he shouted above the wind on top of the building. I could here the sound of bullhead engines coming up below us. I needed to hurry so I charged at him and slashed with crescent rose. I was done messing around. He dodged and threw a burn crystal at me and fired his weapon.

Ah shit.

The flames I expected to feel never came as I was enveloped by a purple sigil that blocked the fire. For a brief moment I was reminded of lavender and felt a pang in my heart, as painful as the day she died. Shaking my head free of the memories I focused on the mage.

Oh shit, it was Glynda Goodwitch. This day went from bad to worse.

Another man joined in on the fight. He appeared from nowhere in a burst of feathers. Double shit. Qrow Branwen. This day officially went from worse to 'dear gods why me.'

Thanks to my loyalists in my information network, I knew that both of these hunters were part of a secret group, the order of the maidens and who had been responsible for watching over the three other maidens. They had been searching for me for years.

The bullhead came up from edge of the building and roman jumped on. He shouted to someone inside and s person who could only be a woman began charging something. That's when I felt it.

A tiny spark of power that grew into a flame. My eyes widened because I knew this power.

The power of the summer maiden burst forth as flames spewed from the womans eyes. Suddenly my anger couldn't be contained, because that meant terra was dead.

Tensing up I let out what could only be described as a feral cry of anguish. I liked terra. She was the only maiden of this generation that I had become friends with. The others were too cheery, but terra was practical about the world.

I screamed at the woman "YOU BITCH!" and charged forwards at her, pulling the relic of destruction out of her pocket dimension for the first time in five hundred years. Her eyes widened in fear and I relished it as she realized her incoming doom. Splaying her hand out in front of her she let out a stream of fire that only slowed me down. But that was all she needed.

"Torchwick get us out of here!" she shouted, and the bullhead began flying away.

Not on my watch, asshole.

Calling on the more obscure power of the fall maiden I closed my eyes and focused. A storm brewed overhead, and I held my hand straight above me. Lightning began to rain down before eventually striking my hand. Opening my eyes, the orange flames came out both eyes as I let the energy overtake me.

"Lady you need to stop!" Qrow shouted from behind me. I ignored him and pointed a single finger towards the fleeing aircraft. The lightning burst forth from my finger tip and shot through the air. I held my breath as it got closer to the bullhead.

It missed, going just past the top of the aircraft with a massive crack. It must have been deafening to the occupants but to me it was a sign of failure.

I fell to my knees and screamed at the sky in mourning for terra.

The two hunters behind me began to move and I was ready instantly, facing them with crescent rose in one hand, and the relic in another. My head was bowed low so they couldn't see my eyes under the hood of my cloak.

"I think it would be best if you came with us young lady." Glynda said. I barked out a laugh at the statement before slipping the relic back in her dimension and crescent rose behind my back.

"You're lucky I'm tired and have somewhere else to be." I said in anger and frustration as I shouldered past them. Before I could jump from the building a force wrapped around my limbs. Looking down I saw purple glowing bands around my arms and legs. I was just about to break out of them using the briefest bit of magic when the tip of a scythe pushed into my neck.

'okay I'll play along.' I thought to myself.

They took me to prison of all places and I suddenly regretted playing along. I sat for almost thirty minutes with Glynda and Qrow glaring at me. I was just about to call it quits and walk out of here when the door opened and in walked the last person I had ever expected to see in my unending life.

'it is time' a long-forgotten voice whispered. I steeled my nerves.

"Ruby rose, you have silver eyes." The man said. It was Ozpin, headmaster of beacon. But I knew him by another name. I smirked as my silver eyes glowed for everyone to see.

"Hello old man, been awhile."

I

I

I

 **My first point is that I tried my best to make the stories as different as possible but there's not a lot that came to mind for how to make an immortal ruby story different. Honestly this story started because I binge read that entire story in one night and had a really weird dream afterwards that followed a similar plot.**

 **My second point I wanna make is that from here on out the chapters will be shorter. This was only a history building thing along with a slight cliffhanger. Most chapters from here on out will probably be less then four thousand words. Also I know that this first chapter jumps around and is a bit confusing, and I do apologize for that.**

 **If you've read this far I thank you for your patience. If you could be so kind as to leave a review it would benefit me greatly as I know I'm not the greatest writer, but any feedback helps me improve.**

 **Thanks again for reading.**


	2. Chapter 2: The World is Changing

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter two: The World Is changing**

"Hello old man, been awhile." I said with a smirk. He must not have recognized the magic in me. Well to be fair it has been several centuries and my magic had changed to accommodate the fall maiden power, so I guess I could understand why he thought of me as Ruby Rose and not 'The unnamed woman with her four best friends.'

"It's you! But how?" He asked, his cane slipping from his hand in shock as he stood quickly.

"That's a long story 'Ozpin' and I would rather tell it at home." I explained. He nodded, and I stood up, free from the handcuffs. Qrow laughed at Glynda's surprised expression.

Walking out of the cell and the police station altogether, I turned around at the footsteps echoing on the dark street as the group followed me.

"I hope you don't mind, but it is a rather nice night and my home is close by." I said. It really was a nice night and I enjoyed walking through the street lit town of patch.

"So where are we going exactly." The gruff voice of Qrow spoke. We had been walking for a few minutes in silence, the only noise being our feet on the ground and the tapping of Ozpin's cane. Even with this group it was still quiet and peaceful here. I've been staying with a nice family for several years now, the Xiao-long family.

I showed up when his first wife, coincidentally the sister of Qrow, Raven Branwen, left him with their child, a little girl named Yang. It had been storming terribly and I was huddled in the corner of the bus stop, wrapped up in my cloak for warmth when Tai-yang spotted me and offered to take me to his house for the night. I introduced myself as summer when he introduced himself. Feeling grateful the next morning I had made breakfast and cleaned around the house. Yang wasn't old enough to attend the academies and Tai was embarrassed to ask if I could watch her while he went to work at signal. I agreed.

Coming home that night he told me he would take me home if I wanted. I declined and left, but not before yang made me promise to come back and visit. I said it was okay so long as Tai was fine with it and he was. it was two days later when he found saw me heading into the forest and ducking into a run-down shack. He confronted me and I confessed that this was where I had been living, not because I was poor, but because I liked the quiet, and my old house now felt wrong somehow. He ranted at me about the dangers of being in the forest alone and before I could get another word out he dragged me back to his home.

Yang was ecstatic when Tai announced that I would be living here. Unfortunately, it was almost time for me to disappear and start a new life. I tried to explain to Tai that I couldn't stay and he kept asking why. I did so much for yang and around the house why not just stay with them. In my frustration the truth of my existence and life came out without me really intending to say that.

"Are you being serious?!" He asked incredulously. "Do you take me for some kind of idiot?" he got upset that I might think him so foolish.

"It's not like that and I'll prove it." I whipped out a dagger and dragged it over the palm of my hand before he could do anything, and he watched as it healed immediately.

"holy shit you're serious." He breathed out

"Yes I am." I hung my head. "I'm nearly a thousand years old and have seen so many things." I whispered brokenly. He pulled me into a hug and for the first time since I was created I felt safe.

'Is this what having a father feels like?' I thought to myself as I cried.

I stayed with him and yang for six months before I decided staying with them was a bit risky, so I rebuilt the shack in the forest and he and yang would come visit me.

Yang and I grew close like sisters and after her fifteenth birthday we decided she could learn my secret. She was confused at first but eventually understood that nobody could know about my powers or immortality. She thought it was the coolest damn thing she'd ever seen and heard of. She also took it as her responsibility to protect me for some reason. It was cute when she was being protective.

Yang would stay with me in my little shack sometimes and I would tell her stories of old, things that had become legends or forgotten completely. When she was good enough after training with Tai I began teaching her different fighting styles, having mastered dozens of them myself. Her preferred style was brawling, and I aimed to teach her everything I knew about the various brawling forms. Even Tai would spar with us every now and again so yang could get experience against fighting multiple opponents.

I was snapped out of my reminiscing when Qrow loudly cleared his throat to get my attention. Realizing I had stopped in the middle of the path thinking about the past, I shook my head free of those thoughts and pushed on. As we walked he seemed to be getting more and more tense until I finally realized why. Or rather, his anger at me told me why.

"What the hell are we doing here!? I swear to god if you've done anything to them!" he jumped in front of me when we broke through the tree line coming upon Tai's house.

"I've done nothing and you will do nothing as well. These are nice people." I explained. There was an edge to my voice that only Ozpin seemed to catch. He tried to reign in Qrow but the old drunk was to angry.

"That's my family in there so don't you go telling me what to do! I'll kill you if you've hurt them!" he shouted. Just then Tai and yang came out of the house to see what the commotion was.

"You two stay back!" The drunkard shouted.

"Rubes what the hell is going on!" Yang shouted. Qrow looked at me incredulously as I walked up to the porch and gave yang a hug.

"Hey little dragon." Using her nickname always assured her everything was okay.

"These are just some people who I need to give an explanation to." I said lightl. She didn't need to worry about me.

"Okay but what do two teachers from beacon and my uncle have to do with anything you could explain." Yang countered.

Wait a minute.

"Uncle?" I pulled away from the hug. I glared t Tai and he at least looked sheepish.

"You never mentioned any family. Have you told him anything about me?" I accused. His jaw opened widely in protest.

"I haven't said anything to anybody, I swear." Tai crossed his finger over his heart. Grow whipped his head away from glaring at me to glaring at Tai.

"You knew. About all of this! I've been trying to track her down for years and she's been under my nose! How long have you been hiding her!" He accused.

"Now wait just a minute!" I was in Qrows face in a split second. "don't go blaming him. I asked him to keep my secret and he did. Admirably so. Him and Yang both. And they haven't been 'hiding me' I just never wanted to be found and in fact, if it weren't for other factors," I glanced at ozpin for a second "I wouldn't even have said who I was. What I am. And if you ever! Talk to me like that again, I'll shove my boot so far up your ass you'll taste the pine needles we just walked through." I growled at him.

Ozpin asserted more of his authority and Qrow finally backed down. He deactivated his scythe and stowed it in sword form behind his back. He growled and walked over to yang and gave her a tense hug. She shook her head to something he whispered in her ear. Probably making sure I hadn't done anything to them. I turned back to Tai.

"I'm sorry to have brought this upon you. If I had known you were related I wouldn't have brought them here. I hoped that if things got messy I could get rid of them all and take you and yang to safety." I explained. He nodded before bringing me in for a hug. Over the years he had become a sort of father figure to me. Speaking of parental figures.

"Oh shit I have to make a call!" before anyone could argue I sped to my shack where I had left my scroll.

Dialing the familiar number, I held it up before a panther faunus answered.

"Hey Khali! Sorry I'm calling so late but I had to tell you that something came up." I told the woman.

"That's okay, but is everything alright? Is Blake safe?" she questioned. I swore to myself that I would watch over the Belladonna family but not interfere unless they were being enslaved or hurt. Blake was neither, so I couldn't help her and hoped she would learn when she became part of the more violent faction of the white fang. Eventually she did and I gave Khali the money to give to Blake for a safe place to stay when she left the white fang.

"Bake is safe and sound and she still has her acceptance letter to Beacon." I promised. Khali let out a sigh of relief.

"That's good to hear. Now how are you dear?" she asked. Her motherly tendencies towards me were always appreciated. She had become a mother to me ever since I had saved he, a baby Blake, and her husband Ghira from a sea grimm that decided to attack the ship they were on. They had been heading towards Vales port to negotiate a trade deal between the kingdom and menagerie. I escorted them the rest of the way, was there for the meeting, and escorted them back where they asked if I could stay. I stayed nearby reluctantly until Ghira remembered the story that had been passed down in the Belladonna family for years.

A lone warrior, a guardian angel sworn to protect the family for all time. In the dead of night, he had confronted me about it and I had to tell him the truth. As they were in the white fang, and Blake was too young to know the secret, I acted as a body guard for years, hooded so nobody would know that I wasn't a faunus.

I had to leave eventually when Ghira didn't like the white fang was headed in so he stepped down. Blake stayed with the fang and her parents asked me to keep her safe. So I followed her around the kingdoms where she remained in the dark about me.

She still is to this day.

"I'm tired Khali." I said slowly. Her face got softer as she looked at me through the hologram.

"What happened." she asked softly.

"It's time for me to stop hiding. The old man found me and I had to reveal myself. I fear that I won't be able to keep my promise to your family much longer. With my purpose coming fast it means that whatever catastrophe I was created for is on its way." I confessed in a hushed whisper. Khali looked scared for a moment before she schooled her features and spoke.

"Whatever happens will happen, sweetie. You may be immortal, but you aren't a god. And besides, by preventing the catastrophe you will protect the Belladonna family." She rationalized.

I smiled at her. She was always an optimist.

"The old man has found me again. The 'champion of the gods.'" I scoffed at the title. It wasn't any better than some of the ones I had gained over the centuries. 'Slayer' being of them.

It was always funny that each academy had its own 'elite' hunters and huntresses, usually based around a title I or my friends had earned. Beacons 'elite' students were in the 'skull splitter' program, a nickname Sage had earned because of the giant sword she wielded with ease.

"So what does the old man finding you mean?" Khali spoke, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"It means that Ozpin needs help now, and I am the only one capable of helping him." I answered honestly. Khali got really pale and I was worried she would pass out.

"Ozpin, as in the headmaster of Beacon, the school Blake is going to?" She asked unsteadily. The shake in her voice was undeniable and it hurt to hear it there.

"Yes. The old man is Ozpin. I've already got an idea however so just trust me okay."

"Maho-Ruby, I do trust you." I laughed at the slip of an old name. Mahogany, not one of my favorite identities in all honesty.

"The trust Indi put in me to protect her family has always astounded me, just as the trust you place in me now does." Khali smiled softly at my statement.

"After everything you've done, how could I not trust you?" She said like it was the most obvious statement in the world. I shook my head and gave her a grin before remembering the main reason I wanted to call her

"Oh shit-" I said

"Language." Khali exclaimed. I rolled my eyes. Honestly this woman couldn't not be a mom if she tried.

"I almost completely forgot to tell you but it should be fairly obvious by now due to recent events-" I was cut off again.

"You wont be able to come visit." I heard the slight disappointment but the understanding on Khali's face made me thankful for someone like her.

"I'll try, but it's gonna be awhile before I can see you…I'm sorry."

"It's fine dear." She cooed "As long as you'll be here at some point so Ghira and I can see you I'll be happy." She smiled.

"Alright. I promise I'll visit the moment I can." I promised.

I hung up and ran back towards the house at full speed and arrived seconds later. not bothering to knock I walked in the house and everyone was sitting in the living room waiting for me.

"I would rather not do this but it seems I don't have a choice." I said. Ozpin nodded his head.

"There are several things we need to discuss." Ozpin said. Qrow shot to his feet.

"How about we start with where the hell you've been for the last seventy-five years. The last time anyone saw you was the great war and before that recorded history puts you as dissapearing five hundred years before THAT." the drunkard said in a huff. somehow he was drunk from the time I left to the time I got back. I don't even want to know.

"First off where the hell do you get off on accusing me of just dissapearing. Finding a reincarnating wizard isn't as easy as it would seem asshole. Eventually I got tired of searching and figured that if it was meant to happen Ozpin would find me. Now he has and we can begin the mission the brothers set for us." Frustration was not a word that came close to describing what I felt towards the graying sythe master.

"Well you could've started sooner if you had kept looking for him!" He shouted at me. I narrowed my eyes and looked at Ozpin.

"What the hell is he talking about?"

"In my frustration at not being able to find you and not being able to access the vault you hid for the relic of destruction, I pressed upon the brotherhood that finding you was of the utmost importance."

"So you blamed me for not being able to save the world just yet?!" Now I was livid.

"No that's-"

"I don't care if it;s what you meant. It's clearly how this birdbrain has taken it, and who knows how many of your other followers think the same thing!" I shouted.

"Since you clearly don't care about the truth how about I fix that. How dare you lay the blame of not being able to save the world at my feet when you nearly ruined it! I was a goddess for a brief period of time but you?! You were a Conqueror! A Tyrant! You pulled thousands of people into a war for 'unification' that cost thousands more lives! I Heard the legends! That ones that you wish were buried! You forget that i met you after you wasted two of your reincarnations and were well on your way to wasting a third!" I ranted and shouted at him. He didn't even try to deny it either, he just asked, "How did you know I wasted three lives?!"

"Screw you if you think I'll ever tell you! You lying bastard!" I shouted at him. I was so fed up I ran out into the yard. I heard Yang run after me. Standing in the middle of the training ring I collapsed on my knees and screamed at the sky. Yang wrapped strong arms around me that felt like they were trying to hold the pieces together.

"A thousand years I've waited for my purpose, only to for Ozpin to lie to everyone about his role in everything and throw the blame at my feet." I sniffled. Yang just held me tighter. I cried before I wore myself out and Yang carried me back into the house and laid me down on her bed while she laid out her bed roll. I was asleep in minutes.

 **Something I forgot to include in the last chapter; just how powerful Ruby's magic is. It isn't all powerful. Cause that would be OP like her semblance. It can't do certain things, like healing a life-threatening wound on other people. Now it does allow her more power for her aura and semblances, thus giving her near indestructible aura and a crazy powerful semblance. Her eyes also work much like in the show, but with a little something extra that will come into play in a later chapter. Sorry for anyone who was confused by it.**


	3. Chapter 3:Sing, Immortal Heart

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter three: Sing, Immortal Heart**

Getting up in the morning I dreaded the coming conversation. Going through the motions of my morning routine I went downstairs after getting dressed and saw that everyone was still here. Well, likely they had gone home for the night and just come back early. I nodded my head and got breakfast from a stash behind Tai's cereal. Finishing that I sat back on the couch and Ozpin spoke first.

"Where should we begin?" He said. I glared at him and he sipped his coffee nonchalantly.

"First off, Ass-pin, seeing as I've revealed your great shame of hiding for centuries to your inner circle, I would like to apologize. Secondly, I'm not happy that you blamed the world still being broken on me. Thirdly, I know I'm a maiden and immortal, but what do you need me for? The brothers only told me you were their champion and that I had the power to help you. You seem to be doing just fine right now." I crossed me legs and arms, showing that I'm still on edge around them.

"First I would like to apologize as well. You're right, I was ashamed of the years I'd wasted when I could have done something. When I left Salem I was heartbroken and didn't know what to do so I tried to run away from my purpose. I blamed you for the fact that the world isn't fixed simply because of my shame. Secondly, the brothers never told me your exact purpose, only that you're a protector and woman with extraordinary power." He explained.

Protector? That's oddly specific.

"Did they say what I was the protector of, besides the relic? What are you even the 'champion' of anyway?"

"My mission is supposed to be to prepare humanity for the brothers return, and when they are ready, the brothers will judge them. If humanity is ready, magic will return as well as the brothers." My eyes widened.

"What?! But the brothers are gone! How are they supposed to 'come back'?"

"They told me to find the relics when humanity was ready and bring them together. They would act like a bell, alerting the brothers that it was time." Ozpin said.

Holy shit.

"How many have you found?" I asked. Please say none please say none.

"Four." Qrow said smugly. I looked at Ozpin and he sighed.

"The relic of destruction hasn't been found. I never knew where it was and never found it. so I created a fake from what I remember the God of Light showing me. It was a sword, and I modeled it after the sword one of the statues is holding in the courtyard of beacon, imbuing it with a small amount of magic to trick anyone into thinking it was real, and then putting it in the vault where only a maiden could open it. As it turns out, you." He finished looking at me. "So we only know of three relics. I'm sorry."

I stood up and slammed my fists together, pulling them apart in the motion of drawing a sword. Closing my eyes, I felt the pommel form in my hand, and then the sword blade manifested in the drawing motion. Swinging it around, I rested the handle and blade in my hands and held it in front of the headmaster. Standing up, holding a shaking hand out to touch it, he drew back when he felt the dark magic inside the blade.

"Now you know why I never used it. I felt it corrupting me from the inside out and I figured another evil immortal was bad, so I put her in a pocket dimension that only I can get to. Besides, I didn't trust Atlas' militaristic tendencies." I smirked.

"Your power will likely never seem to amaze me." He said reverently.

To be fair I am a creation of the gods, so I do have a bit of an unfair advantage, not that I'm complaining.

Sliding destruction back into her pocket I sat back down, crossing my legs and arms across my chest. "Now, I believe there is other business that needs to be taken care of."

"And what would that be princess?" Qrow asked without a care in the world. His nonchalant attitude screamed covering something up, trying to bury a memory.

"First of all, I've been a literal goddess for a brief period of time, so hold your tongue. Second, I don't care for your attitude. Third, if you cannot behave I will have you removed from this plane of existence!" I stood up and towered over his sitting form. He rose to meet the challenge and in in the blink of an eye I picked him up, ran him several dozen miles away, and appeared back in the house in under two seconds.

"Anyone else?" I snarled. Everyone else, except Yang since she had gone to shower, stared wide eyed.

Sitting back down on the couch I got down to business.

"First off I need to know everything you know that I might not. Second, the sword always stays with me, no exceptions. Third, Who the FUCK was the woman that killed terra, and where do I find her." I growled out the last part.

"We'll need to work something out so we can share information, as I'm sure you have your own as well. The sword I would prefer being locked in the vault, but I will agree that the way things are right now it would be best if you kept it. Terra is alive but extremely weak, we have no idea who that woman is or what she did. It seems as if she's sucked the power out of Terra's body."

My eyes widened.

"What do you mean 'sucked out of her body.' Describe to me what happened to her!" I needed to know, especially if it meant I could save her

"Whatever it was appeared to be grimm in nature, nothing I've ever seen before." Ozpin admitted. Damnit. I had hoped it was another form of magic and that maybe whatever had happened could be undone.

"I'd still like to see her. She means a great deal to me." I confessed quietly. Ozpin nodded his head before speaking up.

"I believe I have an idea that would be sufficient to deal with multiple problems." God he was so professional sometimes.

Like…lighten up a bit Oz. You're a reincarnating wizard talking to an immortal who has seen just as much bloodshed and human catastrophes as I have. Still, I was polite and nodded for him to go on without voicing my thoughts.

"Would you attend beacon as a student. With your experience I would ask you to be a teacher but because of how young you look it wouldn't be possible."

If I hadn't been sitting already I would have had to sit down. As it happened though I had been sipping some water and almost did a spit take.

Okay maybe I did do a spit take.

All over Glynda.

Well I've had a good run.

I was broken out of my inner thoughts when Ozpin cleared his throat, clearly expecting an answer, and hoping I would choose his suggestion.

I did. What could it hurt?

"Alright, but I do have several conditions." I said while trying to sound serious. Ozpin looked at me expectantly and waited patiently for my conditions.

"I'll wear a uniform but only if I can wear my cloak as well. I literally helped build beacon, so I think I have that right." Ozpin nodded easily enough.

"I want to be able to visit Terra and see if I can help her. That is also nonnegotiable." Again, Ozpin nodded like he had expected that, and likely he probably had.

"I'll also be carrying crescent rose with me at all times while Destruction is hidden, or, if it would be better, a hidden dagger. I won't be weaponless if I can help it." I stated honestly.

"While I am fine with a hidden dagger on your person, your scythe is a bit much, so I ask that you not carry that with you." He said politely. That was fair, so I agreed.

"I'll live on beacon grounds, but I'll also be traveling sometimes to check on my informants, so I will disappear from time to time." Ozpin seemed hesitant, likely at the fact that someone as powerful as me would disappear for days at a time, but he nodded eventually.

"My last condition is that Blake Belladonna be on my team no matter what." I admitted. Ozpin looked confused and Glynda looked aghast that I would even ask for this.

"May I ask why miss Belladonna has to be on your team?" Ozpin asked.

"I made a promise to Indigo Belladonna, one of the founders of the hunters academies and my best friend, that I would always protect her family. I failed in that promise during the great war, but I swore never again would I let that happen." Preto's face flittered through my mind.

Ozpin nodded in understanding but Glynda still wasn't satisfied.

"If you promised to protect her than you must know of her history with the white fang!" she accused.

"Of course I knew! But I couldn't interfere with her life! Every Belladonna must follow their own path without my interference, except in extreme cases of life and death. Blake is very good at avoiding serious injury or death." A small smile as I remembered watching over her training with Adam. As much as I hated the prick, he taught her valuable lessons in fighting and observation. "And I am very proud of her for finding her way back to the correct path."

Glynda seemed to deflate at the detailing of my promise, but none of them would ever really know the truth of my oath.

Ozpin thought over the information I had given him before he stood up and paced around the room. I was prepared to walk away from him, champion or not, when he came back with that determined stony look on his face.

"Your condition that Ms. Belladonna be on your team will be accepted." I looked at him with a huge smie. "However," he continued. "until you are absolutely sure of your teams trustworthiness, they cannot, under any circumstances, learn of the maiden powers, your silver eyed powers, or your immortality. The time will come when they should know, and I will leave the option of telling Ms. Belladonna up to you, but whoever else ends up on your team cannot know."

If only he could read my mind, but then he would know of my nefarious plan.

Tai nearly scared the shit out of me when he spoke up right behind me for the first time since I walked in the house.

"I'll tell yang the good news."

Ozpin was about to comment on the smirk that appeared on my face, but the door to the house banged open and in walked a pretty pissed of Qrow. He was huffing and puffing like he'd run a marathon or flown one.

Qrow glared at me with murderous intent before a freshly showered Yang jumped on him from behind and wrapped him in a bear hug. I just barely saw her wink at me before she and Qrow toppled to the ground in a heap.

She got off quickly before wrapping me in my own bear hug.

"Dad just told me the great news!" she squealed. "I can't believe my older sister is coming to beacon with me! Back to beacon with me?" She mused to herself before shaking her head clear and hugging me tightly again.

"Yang, I don't need air to live, but I do like having it." I grunted. She was smothering me with her boobs.

"I'm sorry but I'm just so happy!" She squealed again. I swear if it was possible I would've gone deaf from just how high pitched her squealing was.

"I'm literally only going to be there for reasons other than school work. It would be so much easier if I could be a teacher but because the brothers stuck me around the age of eighteen there isn't much I can do about it." complaining solves nothing but it does make me feel better.

"Plus, teachers are going to hate me because I know so much more than them." I rolled my eyes. Being immortal and going to school was going to be hell.

"You'll be great. Isn't it funny that you'll be able to graduate from a school you helped build." Yang commented.

"Yes ha ha. So funny. There's a reason I avoided going to hunter schools." I looked away, but Yang understood.

"Hey come here." She pulled me into a soft hug. Besides Indi, Yang gave the best hugs ever.

"Thanks, little dragon." I said in her ear. She hugged me tighter for a second before letting me go. Qrow popped up out of nowhere.

"So that's just it. You're letting her go to Beacon and put the entire student body in danger, because what?! She asked nicely?!" So…he seemed a little upset.

"No Mr. Branwen, I'm going to Beacon so I can fulfill the will of the gods with their champion." Was the only reply I gave. I didn't want to deal with him now but apparently he wasn't done.

"Just one second, how can we even trust you. You've hidden for centuries, only to come out of hiding to fight a war for the faunus, kill hundreds of people in the process and then disappear again. The only thing that's lived as long and walked with you is death." He spat. Okay maybe a lot upset.

"Uncle Qrow!"

"Qrow!"

Multiple people shouted at the same time. His words cut deep but they weren't wrong. My hands were soaked in the blood of soldiers and innocents alike, most happened during the great war, but some…

"You're right Mr. Branwen," My eyes began to glow an eerie silver. "My hands are stained as red as my cloak, and it may never come off, but at least I'm willing to try to use my power to make life better for people. The same as I have been doing for centuries. I've stopped more wars from happening in remnants history than years you've been born." I stepped forward, flames sparking to life in my palms.

"So you see, you don't have a choice but to trust me, because without me, you'd all die slow and painful deaths." The very air around us grew heavy, and storm clouds began to form before I felt a hand on my arm. I looked to see Yang's lilac eyes staring at me, pleading with me to stop. I took a deep breath and calmed down, but not before one final jab.

"I have seen things you cant even dream of in nightmares, so before you go accusing me of being selfish, or cowardly, or a monster, just remember who showed your fledgling race to use your souls alongside four friends, who protected dozens of cities and a few kingdoms from ruin, who has seen more death than can ever be understood…" I trailed off, turning around and running to my shack in the woods, ignoring the calls of Yang and Tai.

Stepping into my hut was the most at peace I could ever feel, but right now it didn't seem to be making a difference in my restlessness. So, I started packing what little clothes I owned, alongside keepsakes I never went anything without.

My armor from the great war, a reminder of who I became when faced with the worst of humanity. Shaking my head free of those reminders I stowed my armor in the same pocket dimension as the sword and slung a bag over my shoulder, filled with every bit of clothing I had, which wasn't much.

Only a few pairs of pants, shirts, socks, boots, and cloaks.

Finishing up a gave a last longing glance to the place that had been home for the last few years. Running back to the clearing in front of Tai's house I was there in a few seconds.

"Okay, I've got everything I need, we should be going."

"Well if you'd stuck around and or remembered the acceptance letter I got, you'd know that the airship doesn't leave until tomorrow, sis." Yang laughed.

"Oh yeah. Well then I'll see you tomorrow." Telling Ozpins group and offering no further chance for conversation as I walked into Tai's house. Everyone must have left because Yang and Tai walked back into the house alone.

"Well that was fun." Yang said with a cheery smile. I just looked at her with deadpan eyes and Tai face palmed before walking into the kitchen for a sandwich.

My stomach grumbled and I remembered that it was noon. Damn we had been talking for a long time. Fixing myself a sandwich as well as Yang's I sat back down and handed her the food.

"Thanks Rubes!" she said before taking a large bite.

"Yang you're supposed to eat it not inhale it." I admonished. She rolled her eyes and swallowed the fist sized bite she had taken.

"Sorry sis." She said before taking a smaller bite. Lunch proceeded quietly after that, small easy conversations, mostly Yang asking Tai and I what beacon was like, and I told her I'd show her everything about the school.

We talked for hours about how I would continue training with her, even if she was on another team, how I would tutor her in history because she somehow still sucked at it, and the things that would likely happen with me being at Beacon. Namely the danger that would follow by working with Ozpin and his crew against the forced of evil.

Yang told me she was prepared for it all and even defiantly stated that she wasn't scared of anything.

"Yang, fear is natural. I'm scared about what's going to happen. I'm immortal, and that means that one way or another people around me die and I go on. I'm not scared for myself, I'm scared for you and everyone else." I told her quietly. Her defiant attitude deflated quickly at my admission and she wrapped me in a quick hug.

"I'm sorry. Sometimes I forget what you are and what that means to you. I promise I'll be careful but if the world is in danger I'll be right there by your side." The warmth from Yang was comforting, in a way that often reminded me of the group hugs the girls and I used to have.

"I just worry about you Yang. You have a habit of charging in without ever really thinking sometimes and it scares the hell out of me."

"I know you worry, and how many times do I have to apologize for Juniors bar." She chuckled.

"Well I think you're forgiven since it did allow me to gain a lot of information about Ozpin and his group of spies." It turned out to be for nothing in recent days but oh well.

"Well I'm glad my recklessness was good for something." She laughed again. Immediately my mood and the topic shifted.

"You haven't gone looking for her anymore have you?" I whispered. Tai was in the other room, but the man had great hearing. He was a huntsman after all.

"No, after you told me where she was and why she was hiding I stopped." She said sadly.

"Yang she does love you but in her own way. She's hiding to protect you and her powers."

A couple years ago I learned just who Yang's mother was after I figured out who the blonde reminded me of. When I found Raven I was pissed, especially when I learned what she had done to get her maiden powers.

Sarah had been such a sweet girl.

At first I was pissed, attacked and beat her in her tent and was about to kill her when she spoke of why she did it. it wasn't selfish, and I understood the logic of killing the girl, but it didn't make it any better. She spoke how Yang was always in her thoughts though, and that if anything happened Yang would be the next spring maiden.

It was a genius way to protect the maiden powers from the wrong hands. A bit complicated, but genius.

"I know she loves me, you told me that yourself and I trust you, but it still hurts that she's not around." She confessed.

"I know it hurts, but she's protecting you an it was such a hard choice to leave you."

We talked until the sun went down about more Beacon history, the other academies, and some of their secrets. Through it all I felt bad about omitting the vaults that Ozpin had installed, but Yang wasn't ready to know about those yet. Such power couldn't be talked about, even in the privacy of home

"Alright," I said when I saw the time. "It's late and we have a big day tomorrow." I said as I turned out the lights.

"Yeah. Night rubes!" Yang said with a yawn as she went to her room upstairs.

Pulling the blankets up around my body I went to sleep on the couch, a weird feeling settling in my stomach as I would be heading to beacon for the first time in centuries.


	4. Chapter 4: Tell Me Truly

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Four: Tell Me Truly**

Waking up for the day ahead was bittersweet. I would be going to Beacon, an academy I hadn't really been in since it was constructed, but also truly entering the world outside of war and disaster for the first time in centuries. I was honestly a little scared. Tai made Yang and I pancakes for breakfast, which I always joked around and said was mankind's greatest achievement, before he took us to the airfield.

"Well girls this is it. Yang, I am so proud of you. I know you're going to do great things as a huntress, just try not to light any classrooms on fire." He jabbed good naturedly. Yang rolled her eyes.

"That was ONE TIME." She grumbled, crossing her arms across her chest and scrunching up her face.

"Well the instructor did deserve it…" I came to her defense. Tai glared at me before pulling me into a Xiao-long hug.

"Honestly, you going to Beacon after you built it kind of feels like a step down." He laughed. I pouted but he ignored it as he whispered into my ear.

"I know you will but promise me you'll look after Yang. Even if you're on different teams."

"I swear it to you, I'll protect her with everything I have." I told him. Yang has been the only person to get as close as she has than any other person in seventy years.

"Thank you." He said quietly. I broke the hug and turned to Yang.

"I think it's time we got on the air ship since it'll be leaving soon." I put my hand on Yang's shoulder. She looked at me and smiled widely.

"Love you dad!"

"Later Tai." Yang and I said at the same time.

On the airship I reminisced of old times, back before all these amazing creations. Leaning over I whispered to Yang. "You know human development never ceases to amaze me. I remember having to walk everywhere, hearing about news from another village would take days, even in an emergency. If you were lucky you could afford a horse." Yang looked at me with a glint in her eye, snickering before she spoke.

"Damn Rubes, you're ancient!" She laughed hard at me bringing up old times. I laughed with her because it was honestly. Years ago, I would've hated it but coming from Yang it doesn't bother me.

"Yeah yeah laugh it up blondie, I may be old, but you have to admit I look fantastic!" I shot back, a small chuckle escaping as I spoke.

"In all seriousness though, are you okay, you haven't been back here in a long time…" Yang's concern for me was always heartwarming. Even though I was far older, she always had a certain wisdom and character to her that I could never match.

"I'll be alright. The work needs to be done, so I'll do it." Determination was all that came through in my answer, though Yang knew it would still be difficult. Thankfully she didn't say anything else.

"What about you? This is your dream. How are you feeling about it right now though?" genuine concern was the only thing I felt when I asked Yang. Despite our lack of related blood, I still consider her a sister, just like she does with me.

"I'm nervous, but I know I can do it. I've wanted this ever since I knew what hunters were and I'm ready." The conviction in her voice was strong. I was just about to ask her another question when the holovid that had been playing in the background mentioned that the criminal mastermind Roman Torchwick attacked a dust shop. I'm assuming it didn't mention me at all because Ozpin pulled some strings, not that I minded. The broadcast was interrupted when the holoimage of Glynda Goodwitch played. All it was was some introductory thing. I didn't really pay attention.

Yang and I were talking about home when a blonde boy, who seemed somewhat familiar, ran by but not before getting a little throw up on Yang's shoes.

"Ew Gross!"

Getting off the air ship quickly, and into fresh air, Yang shook her shoe free of vomit as the boy familiar boy ran out of the air ship and hurled into a can.

"Well I guess someone had a serious case of motion sickness." I said with a chuckle.

"He's going to be a hunter and he has motion sickness." The deadpan look in Yang's eyes told me she wasn't impressed.

Putting my hands behind my back I began evaluating the other future students.

"God I wish I had this tech a hundred years ago. Honestly you have no idea how easy you have it!" I looked sharply at my sister. I was just about to tell her not to make an old joke when she beat me to it.

"Like I've been saying, it's not my fault you're old."

"Oh shut up." I grumbled.

"Hey Rubes, my friends are here so I'm going to go say hi. You gonna be okay by yourself for a bit?" the concern was heartwarming but unnecessary.

"Yang I've come too terms centuries ago. I'll be fine. Go have fun with your friends but don't forget to be on time for the orientation." I reminded her. She nodded, waving towards her friends as she walked away. I put my hood up and walked around the main court, seeing the design choices of my friends everywhere I looked, especially the statues.

Sighing, I began to reminisce of old times. I wasn't wallowing, but memories flooded my mind as I remembered the hard work that went into making this school. So lost was I that I almost didn't see a case of dust following a white haired girl. Using my reaction time that had been honed for centuries I used my speed and dodged out of the way in the blink of an eye.

Unfortunately, the wind kicked up by my speed knocked one of the cases to the ground. The white-haired girl turned around in a huff of frustration.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" She huffed out. Instantly I recognized her as Weiss Schnee, the heiress to the Schnee dust company, but I decided to have a little fun.

"Do you have any idea of the damage you could've caused!" I stayed silent

"This is dust! Energy!" Again, I stayed silent as she picked up a small vial of burn dust.

"Are you even listening to me!" She shouted as she shook the dust in my face. This was getting out of hand, so I used my semblance, and snatched the vial out of her hand and resealed it before placing it in the case and loading it onto the cart. My cloak fluttering and the organization of the cases was the only indication that that I had moved.

The girls eyes widened as she my cloak settled down, the hood still over my eyes casting a shadow on my face. I was a little irked at her irresponsibility.

"Listen here princess," I spat out "I nor anyone in this school care who you are. Of course everyone knows, but your shit stinks just like everyone else's here in Vale. The Atlesian's might worship the ground you walk on, but I don't." By the time I was done I was looking her in the eye, putting just the tiniest amount of power into my eyes, making them glow ever so slightly.

"She's an heiress actually." A voice came from behind. I recognized it instantly and turned to look at one of the reasons for my attendance in the first place.

"You should take heed when talking to her like that, you might end up having your life ruined and forced to work in the mines just to feed your family, like the faunus." She said. A pang went through my heart because she sounded so much Preto, looked a bit like her too.

"Why the nerve- I ought to- ugh!" She stomped off, her servants following her. I had expected Blake to walk away after that, but she stuck around.

"I've never heard someone stand up to a schnee like that before." She said quietly.

"She needs to be brought to reality if she's going to survive here. The world outside of the mansion is unforgiving, and while her home life wasn't the best, she was still sheltered." I said.

"What would you know of her home life." Blake was on the defensive instantly, thinking I was justifying Weiss' attitude.

"Her father is a very angry man and her mother is an alcoholic who never talks with her children. The only role model's she has are her sister and butler." I gave Blake the facts. I noticed her bow twitched every now and again. Interesting. I'll have to talk to Khali

"How do you know all this?" The question contained a hint of suspicion.

"Because I do research and make it my job to know things about everyone around me." Blake paled a little bit at the implication that I might know she was a faunus. I did, but that was beside the point.

"I don't believe we've properly introduced ourselves. My name I Ruby Rose." I hoped this would break the ice. Eventually she would need to know my secret, but now wasn't the time.

"I'm Blake. Blake Belladonna." She held out her hand hesitantly. I shook it quickly.

"Well Blake it's nice to meet you. Would you like to join me for orientation, it should be starting in a few minutes, but we still have time to get to it." I offered. Knowing Blake as well as I did I knew she most likely had studied as much as she could about the layout of Beacon.

"I wouldn't mind. I know a pretty quick way there so we should be able to get decent seats." Yup. She studied. I smirked as I walked behind her.

Arriving in the auditorium quickly, Blake and I walked around before Yang spotted me.

"Hey Ruby! Over here! I saved you a seat!" She called out.

"My sister saved me a seat and it looks like there's another seat open, wanna join?" I asked. Blake nodded her head and we both went to where Yang was waving enthusiastically.

"She's eccentric." Blake commented.

"Oh, you have no idea." I said

Walking up to Yang she finally noticed who I was with, looking me in the eyes to confirm I gave a very slight nod of my head, and she smiled brightly.

"Hey there! Names Yang, who are you?" Gods she's such a social creature.

"Blake." And then there's Blake.

"Well Blake nice to meetcha." Yang said, the cheer in her voice along with its pitch made Blakes bow twitch slightly.

"How's your day been so far Rube's?" Yang asked.

"Coulda gone better. Ran into a Schnee who decided to wave burn dust in my face. But I told her off with some help from Blake." I said smugly. It was always fun knocking down arrogant people a peg or two. I was about to continue when I felt the area around us get a little colder.

Here we go again.

"YOU!" I whirled around and got in her face.

"What about me!" I shouted.

"You're lucky your irresponsibility with your semblance didn't get us killed!" oh hell no.

"I would watch your tone with me. I don't take kindly to others shoveling the blame on me." I growled through my teeth. She back off for a second before her attitude came back.

"Do you really want to make this up to me?"

"Not really because I don't care and I didn't do anything wrong." I grit my teeth on the words.

She seemed surprised for a second, again, before she collected herself.

"Never talk to me again and I'll consider it fair." She said snobbishly. Hell, for a person with zero real friends, it's a wonder even her fake ones manage to stick around.

"If I ever see you it'll be too soon." I said, though I knew that wasn't going to be likely, especially with events set in motion already beyond my control and impossible to determine.

Ozpin cleared his throat on the stage, gathering everyone's attention.

"I'll…keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge. To hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you've finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you…and all I see is wasted energy. In need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will only prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step." Looking around, everyone wasn't feeling very inspired.

"Fucking hell, Oz." I mumbled under my breath. Only Yang seemed to hear it. Glynda spoke into the microphone about staying in the ball room tonight before initiation.

"He seemed kinda…off." Yang said. the hesitation in her voice was only matched by everyone else in the room. Coming from someone who had met the headmaster before and knowing his secret, she wasn't wrong.

"Yeah no shit." I grumbled. Him and I needed to have chat. "I'm gonna go talk to him." unfortunately Weiss heard me.

"And what does someone like you think you're going to talk to the headmaster about." She sneered.

"What him and I discuss is none of your concern nor will it ever be." I began waking away. "Not if I have anything to say about it."

I smirked when the blonde boy began horribly attempting to flirt. Didn't he know about the red headed beauty staring at him?

Walking the halls to Ozpins office from memory, since I had taken great care to design this place after all, it didn't take long before I was face to face with Glynda.

"You should be with the other students Ms. Rose." She peered over her glasses, the emeralds she had for eyes trying to peer into my soul.

"You and I both know I'm not an ordinary student for you to order around. I didn't come here to argue though, so will you let Ozpin know I'm coming up." I sighed. I didn't have the energy needed to get into a screaming match with her. She nodded slowly and pushed a button, allowing a door to open to the elevator.

Getting out on the top floor I had to take in the changes that had been made. I remember when Flint, Indigo's son, took over and made changes of his own, the ceiling was a bit low so that was heightened and he had added a few more windows to see the campus grounds, though they were nowhere near the sizes Ozpins are.

Speaking of Ozpin, the man was sitting at his desk and drinking his coffee.

"You've made some changes over the years." I said simply. "Exactly how many incarnations have of yours have been headmaster?" I asked. "I'm curious because this one is the youngest by far."

If he was surprised by the question he didn't show it. Taking in a deep breath and thinking for several seconds he answered.

"I've only ever used the most recent three to become headmaster." I sighed.

"Interesting. But this isn't why I'm here. I'm here because I want to know if you're just gonna tell the students that something is wrong straight up or if you're going to continue being cryptic." He knew I was talking about the speech.

"I let things about the current situation get to me and it showed in my speech. I apologize for that." He said evenly.

"Ozpin please don't lie to me like you've lied to so many other people. I may not be as old as you but I know most of history just as well as you do. I even know your name." It was an in your face move, letting him know just how much I knew, but he needed to know just how serious I was about not being lied too. He seemed to get the message.

"While I won't ask how long you've known my first name, I will ask you to keep it a secret." He said. I nodded. I knew the importance of names, I've had many over the years.

"You can't lie to me Ozpin. We're partners in this, chosen and created by the gods to fix humanity. We must work together. I've been honest with you; can you return the favor with me?" I asked quietly. He nodded though I knew it wouldn't be easy with him. Ozpin was a man of secrets.

"since you're here, would you like to visit terra?" He asked. Though he knew the answer because he started standing up and walking to the elevator.

I beat him there.

Waiting for the door to open and close felt like eternity. Waiting for Ozpin to enter the password and descend into the heart of Beacon felt infinite. Finally we reached the bottom and the door open. The first thing I noticed was Terra. Zipping over to her just under the speed of sound, the materials around her shifted slightly, but thankfully everything was heavy.

Terra was in a chamber, meant to keep her alive. She had a nasty scar on her face and as I looked at it the angrier I got.

"Has there been anything on the woman that did this." A deep growl ripped from my throat that someone would do this.

"We haven't learned anything but we are tryin-"

Try harder!" I shouted. My voice echoed throughout the cavern.

"Calm yourself. We'll find whoever did this." He assured me.

"Promise me that when you find her, I get to kill the bitch." I didn't even look him in the eyes but I knew he understood. He didn't answer and I just hung my hand, putting my palm on the glass.

"Is there anything that can be done to save her. She's just a kid." Came my broken whisper.

"I'm afraid we've tried everything. Conventional medicine cant help her and what remains of my magic can't heal her. Yours cant either." I figured he would say something like that, but it still hurt to hear it.

"So what's your plan. There's two chambers here so I'm assuming you're trying to find some poor sucker to host the weakened maiden powers?" I knew there was no saving her, so I had to move on and bury the feelings, at least for now. As I had done for centuries. Terra would want it this way.

"So far we have only come to the logical conclusion that Miss Nikos is the best candidate to host the spring maiden powers."

"Nikos? Aurora and Bay's child?" Ozpin nodded.

"Yes. She is an incredibly kind, generous, loyal, and selfless person. All great traits for a maiden. She is also a proficient fighter."

"Yes I know that. But what will happen to her if you forcibly take the spring powers out of Terra and forcibly cram it into Pyhhra?" I suspected the answer already but needed to hear it.

"We're not sure what will happen. But the risk is necessary." He seemed relucatant but determined in his answer.

"Do better. Give me the best assurances that Pyhhra will live. Best to do it sooner rather than later." I finished. I didn't want to see the mistrali champion hurt or killed, but I wanted assurances that she would survive the process. Offering no further room for argument I swept my cloak aside with my arm and walked back towards the elevator, leaving Ozpin staring at Terra's unconscious form in contemplation.

"You have two weeks to fix this, and if it's not done in two months you'll find another way." I gave him the ultimatum before the elevator doors closed.

Walking back to the ball room, I found the bed roll Yang had set up for me. I talked with Yang for a bit about nothing important really. I waved at Blake before she blew out her reading candle for the night and she gave me a small wave. The look in her eyes told me she didn't really trust me nut didn't want to be terribly rude to someone who had put Weiss in her place.

Speaking of Weiss, she was in the far corner snoozing peacefully in her all white pajamas and bed roll. Rolling my eyes I pulled my covers up and went to sleep.

I

So it's been brought to my attention by reviewers that I've done it again. And by 'it', I mean that I forgot to explain some things. The first of which being that Ruby didn't make Vaults like we know from the show, these were just simple rooms with magical barriers, of course she didn't account for Ozpin looking for the vaults and using his own magic, the magic that created the maidens in the first place, to move the relics to their current resting places. I'm deeply sorry for the confusion this may have caused and I will try to do better in the future.


	5. Chapter 5: Initiation

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Five: Initiation**

Waking up was slightly unpleasant from the loud girl in pink singing about it being morning and talking a mile a minute to her green garbed friend.

'yikes I'd hate to be that guy.' I thought as I packed up my bed roll. It was early in the morning, and since I technically never really needed to sleep as often as the faunus or humans, I never had to worry about being 'groggy' or 'sleep deprived.' Getting out of my pajamas and into the shower I performed my daily hygiene, rinsing and soaping my hair and body making sure I was clean. I learned the hard way one time that even though bacteria doesn't affect me, I can still be a carrier for diseases.

Getting out of the shower I heard the pink girl, nora, talking to her green friend, ren, while he was busy with his morning routine. Still, they seemed to be friends, and friends are a blessing.

Brushing my teeth I saw Yang stepping out of the shower.

"Yang they're going to call us soon for initiation. You'd better hurry and brush your hair. If you want me to I can do it." Yang nodded and I grabbed the brush before using a little bit of my speed to help things a long since Yang was very particular about her locks. I was one of the few people even allowed to touch them.

Getting that done I pulled on my cloak and brushed my teeth. When all that was completed I went to my locker and grabbed crescent rose, which had been in the locker since I arrived at Beacon. Deep in thought, I realized that had never even seen a beacon initiation. Yang picked up on my mood and put a hand on my shoulder

"What's up?"

"It just feels weird you know? I built this school with my friends and I've never seen an initiation." I whispered as I gave a small smile. Yang hugged me.

"I'm sure they're very proud of you right now." It was only a whisper in my ear, but it spoke volumes.

"I hope so." Came my quiet reply. Yang hugged me tighter before releasing me

The Announcement came through for all students to attend the cliffs overlooking the emerald forest.

"Looks like it's time." I said. Yang nodded.

"C'mon. lets get going. Don't wanna be late for initiation." Yang's usual cheer was enough to bring a smile to my face. She smiled herself before putting an arm on my shoulder. Walking towards the exit, there was a slam against one of the lockers. Looking around, I saw the familiar looking blonde haired man pinned to the locker by a gold and red spear.

"Sorry!" Pyhhra said as she pulled the spear away from the locker…without even touching it. Some form of telekinetic semblance?

When the mistrali champion left, Yang helped the man up.

"You okay Jaune?" Well at least I had a first name now.

"Yeah, thanks Yang."

"Anytime. Oh! This is my sister Ruby!" Yang said. I held out my hand.

"Ruby Rose. Nice to meet you. I believe Yang said your name was Jaune?" The man in question grabbed my hand for a shake.

"Yup. Jaune Arc-" Anything else he said after that was lost in the white noise that seemed to envelop my ears at the mention of his name.

Arc. A family name almost as old as remnant itself. Good family with amazing morals. But I knew the arc family for a different reason.

" _Move up! We have to take that fort!"_ the voice of lieutenant Danielle Arc echoed through my head.

" _We're being over run we need to fall back! Commander Rose You have to leave!" An explosion just as she was finished shouting a few yards away. looking down there was a foot long piece of shrapnel entering in her back and exiting her stomach. I held her as she bled to death._

" _Ruby"_

" _Ruby"_

"Ruby!" Yang said as she pointed Jaune towards the cliffs. He took the hint and left, sending me a glance as he walked out the door.

"You okay there, Rube's?" Yang's sisterly voice came out. Soft and steady, a stable rock in a churning ocean.

"Yeah. Yeah I'm okay." I took a few deep breaths to calm myself. "Just a flashback."

Yang's eyes softened, my time in the great war haunted me the most as it was the most recent thing in m memory. Many things I had come to terms with over the centuries, but the great war was a scar that refused to heal properly. It would bleed the worst at night.

We don't wanna be late." I said, pushing away the memories and walking to the exit towards the cliffs. I could feel Yang's concerned eyes on me the entire time.

Getting to the cliff, I noticed there were only two empty squares on the ground, all the others being occupied, I took my place on the farthest one and Yang stepped onto the second one from the end, between me and Jaune. Ozpin started his overdramatic speech.

"For years you have trained to become warriors, and today your abilities will be evaluated in the emerald forest." He said. Glynda picked up immediately.

"I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Allow us to put an end to your confusion."

God these two were so dramatic.

"Each of you will be assigned to teams. Today." God it was worse than a soap opera. Ozpin picked up again where Glynda stopped. I rolled my eyes and Ozpin looked at me through his dark glasses.

"Theses teams will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest for you to be pared with someone you can work well with." He stared at me as he continued, a small, barely noticeable smirk on his lips. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

Son of a bitch.

"After you've partnered up, head to the northern edge of the forest. It is teeming with Grimm, so do not hesitate to destroy anything in your way or you will die." I smirked at that. "You will be monitored and graded by instructors, however no assistance will be offered. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path with several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. Your performance will be graded appropriately." Ozpin concluded. I narrowed my eyes at him. I hoped it was just a coincidence and that there was another temple he was talking about in the forest, not the one I was suspecting we were being sent to.

Jaune asked question about landing strategies, making me suspicious of his qualifications as a hunter because all huntsman and huntresses know what a landing strategy is. He kept asking questions until he was flung off the cliff, like everyone else had been, and Ozpin sipped his coffee like it was everyday occurrence to see children flying through the sky.

Weirder things have happened honestly.

Yang was flung next, but not before she put her aviators down. My turn came up, but before I launched I left Ozpin and Glynda with a parting comment.

"You're both sadists." And then I was flying though the air. Firing my rifle to get a little extra distance I almost hit a bird before I landed gracefully by using more ammo to slow myself down, tucking and rolling and jumping into a running position. Flying through the forest at a blistering speed I thought about how I needed to find either Yang or Blake. I didn't have to worry because as long as Ozpin held up his end of the agreement, Blake would be on my team no matter what. In my thoughts, I almost ran into a girl in a frilly dress.

Skidding to a halt, I slumped when I realized it was Weiss. She had the same reaction, except she decided to walk the other way, ignoring Ozpins rules.

"Hey! Get your white ass back here!" using my semblance, I ran to her and appeared in her face.

"Don't do that ever again. We looked each other in the eyes so now we have to be partners. If you don't like it, tough shit." I told her. She stomped her foot and walked the complete opposite direction of where we were supposed to go. Grabbing my arm and dragging me with her, she growled at me.

"By no means does this make us friends."

"I couldn't care less. We're partners now, all we need to do is work together." I reminded her.

"Don't slow me down." She stomped off again.

Using my speed, I materialized in front of her yet again.

"Don't worry your highness, I'm not slow. And by the end of this year, you'll be glad to have me as your partner." I told her confidently. Hearing a slight rustling, I ran off. It was irresponsible, but I wanted to see how she performed in a combat situation. She struck me as completely formally trained with now field experience, so I decided to observe her.

Several beowolves broke through into the clearing and surrounded her. what followed honestly blew my mind.

She was preparing her combat stance, focusing all her attention on it, not even bothering to pay attention to the grimm sneaking up behind her.

Gods damnit.

Deciding that the biggest one was the priority, since he was likely the ack leader, I deployed crescent rose into her full form and charged at the leader. Unfortunately Weiss had the same idea as me, and using her glyphs made her fast so she was about to hit me with burn dust.

I prepared for the worst when she diverted it to a nearby tree, destroying it instantly.

"Watch it you dolt! I could've killed you!" If only she knew.

"You'll find I'm pretty hard to kill, Princess." I winked at her. she sputtered at my audacity, but a tree fell right next to us. Using the fire, Weiss and I ran away from the beowolves to regroup ourselves.

Stopping for a break far away from the forest fire, I finally exploded.

"What in the actual ass was that shit back there! That should've gone so much easier, and it would've if you hadn't decided your combat stance was more important than your life!" I shouted at her. How could one girl who's probably spent more money on tutors than I have in centuries no so little about grimm and combat. Weiss was aghast at my crude language but I didn't give a shit.

"If you had been more careful back ther-" I cut her off before she could even continue that line of thought.

"No! This isn't some tutoring lesson Weiss! This is real! No simulation where you can't get killed, No trainers to put a stop to it if things go to far! This is real Weiss and you could die out here!" I ranted. She needed to understand that this was reality, and no matter how much money she had the grimm and the forces of darkness don't care. Weiss deflated at the valid points of my argument.

"What do you suggest I do then?" now we were getting somewhere.

"Hone your instincts. Trust your body and muscle memory. Stop overthinking everything. I watched you in the forest back there. You were entirely focused on the grimm in front of you that you didn't even notice the two grimm sneaking up behind you." Her eyes widened.

"I had no idea…" She admitted quietly.

"We're partners now. I'll help you if you'll let me, but we have to work together to get out of here alive first." I reminded her.

"Okay. Well then we should be heading north." Weiss said, walking south. I zipped over, grabbed her by the shoulders, and turned her around.

"Right, I was just confused for a second and would have corrected myself once I got my bearings." Gods her pride was iimpossible.

"Mmhm."

Walking for almost a half hour it seemed we were getting nothing done. Hearing a squawking above us I got an idea. Grabbing Weiss suddenly, I dematerialized with her into white and red rose petals, launching straight up into the air and landing on the Nevermore's back.

Weiss threw up at the sudden use of my more advanced part of my semblance. I still didn't know what to call it though.

"Never do that again you dolt! Where even are we!" Her face paled even more than normal as the nevermore screeched, providing her with the answer. She looked like she wanted to vomit again.

"That answer your question?" I flashed a cheeky smile at Weiss as I gripped the enormous feathers and looked around us. Sure enough there was only one temple down below, and I really wanted to smash Ozpins coffee mug and make him eat the shards. Weiss' screaming broke me out of my darker thoughts.

"You're insane!" She was holding onto the feathers so tight I was sure she was going to rip them out.

"Maybe!" I shrugged my shoulders. "This is our stop!" I gave her a mock salute as I jumped from the body of the giant Nevermore. Using Crescent Rose, I slowed my descent and used my semblance to materialize by the temple. Looking around I saw that there were large chess pieces on the crumbling pedestals. Noise from the forest caught my attention before I could look at the ancient stone structure.

"Rubes!" Yang shouted as she walked through the tree line, Blake in tow. "Look who I found!" She shouted enthusiastically. Blake looked very uncomfortable around Yang's more…louder tendencies. I waved Yang over, and she trotted to me with a look in her eyes.

"You hoped I would find Blake didn't you?" A smirk.

"Actually, I had hoped to find you. Blake was going to be on my team no matter what because I made a deal with Ozpin." I explained. Yang gaped like a fish.

"Well since Blakes my partner who'd you wind up with?" Blake got our attention.

"Is that who I think it is up there?" God for someone who wanted to hide her faunuas ears she sure flaunted her other traits.

"Yup, that's Weiss." I said, not taking my eyes off the heiress.

"She's gonna fall." Blake said, though the lack of care was amusing.

"Nah she'll be fine." I was confident in that.

"She's falling."

Shit.

Dematerializing into a burst of rose petals I quickly grabbed her from midair and on my way back down grabbed Jaune as he came from…somewhere.

Getting them back onto the ground, I took a minute to re orient myself, as dealing with more than one person always made me dizzy. Jaune collapsed on the ground after throwing up again, thankfully he hadn't done it in midair. Leaning against the pedestal, I grabbed one of the chess pieces and smirked. So this was Ozpins plan to make sure Blake and I ended up on the same team.

Picking up the matching white knight pieces I called Yang over.

"This is your piece and the way You and Blake are with Weiss and I." I said as I handed the piece to her. Looking at the piece and then at the stone around us I was quickly absorbed into the pictography around me.

"What's it say?" I heard Yang ask.

"You tell me. I taught you how to read and write ancient Remnant languages." I watched as she began remembering my leassons and speaking out what the pictures said.

"A group of people worshiped here? Some kind of…flower?" that was all she needed to say before the pieces clicked together. She looked at me with wide eyes.

"These people worshipped me as a savior goddess for a brief period of time. And I allowed it because I thought I gave them hope, which repelled the grimm." I explained. Running my hand down another section that depicted something darker. Yang began translating.

"A woman came to the aid of the villagers, and they prayed to her to continue helping them."

"It was coincidental, Random, when I would appear in the village. I was always traveling back then but this village was beautiful, peaceful." I said. The translation continued as I looked away in shame.

"The woman disappeared for a few months after punishing a man who was beating his wife, and the grimm returned, attacking and killing several people."

"I was aiding a far-off village that was suffering from famine. The man was punished according to the general laws of remnant at the time."

"In the villager's desperation they…they began making sacrifices. To bring her back, they sacrificed a few women at first, and when that didn't work…the villagers sacrificed a child...children." she whispered

"I was just returning from the famished village when I found the entire village in the church they had built to me, not my idea but I allowed it to continue because they were happy. Hearing them praying, I walked in to humor them, and I saw…I saw the young boy I was fond of, laying dead on the alter. The 'Priest' was holding his heart in his hands and burning Rose incense." I whispered. The child had been such a sweet boy, caring to a fault, and I knew. I knew these villagers had tricked him.

"And the woman, seeing what the villagers had done in her name, punished the village, killed everyone." Yang finished quietly.

Someone must have changed that, because it happened very differently.

"I wish I had just killed them them. I wish I could say that my anger didn't blind me but it did. I butchered the priest first." Yang stared at me with wide eyes.

"I still used the relic at the time, and I slaughtered them, destroying everything and burning the village to the ground. I left one child alive. he was the only one left who hadnt been sacrificed." I said as I rubbed my hand over the stone writers mark.

"Why would he write something different?" I asked. The boy had been old enough to remember what had happened. Why would he change the story?

"We'll never know Rube's. C'mon, we should be getting back to the others."

The others. Oh right!

Turning my attention back to the group of people that were standing a few yards away. thankfully it didn't seem they'd heard anything. Especially Blake.

Maybe her bow blocked some of her hearing?

Walking over to the group, I heard several more noises from the forest, close by and farther away. An Ursa crashed through the forest, and I brought the scope of my scythe to my eye and sighted in the head of the large creature, watching in confusion as it collapsed and disappeared. Pink hair appeared, looking around extatically at her green garbed companion. Nora and Ren, if I remembered.

Nora started singing about being queen of the castle, picking up the white rook piece. Ren called her over and she went to him like a puppy.

A loud screeching came from deep in the forest. Jaune was here so where was the screeching coming from?

Pyhhra came crashing from the sky, landing in a heap.

"Great, the gangs all here! Now we can die together!" Yang said cheerily. Oh gods, sometimes her morbid sense of humor came out of nowhere. It was usually pretty funny. Still is in this case.

I helped Pyhhra to her feet and directed her to the pedestals, because Jaune had yet to grab a relic. She grabbed the white rook piece, the same as Nora and Ren. They'd all make a great team together, Ren would probably be the best choice for team leader. Calm, rational, especially in the way he handled Nora.

I was broken out of my musings when a grimm species I thought I had destroyed burst through the tree line.

A deathstalker.

Holy shit! I hadn't seen one in centuries, and judging by the look of this one, it had been around for just as long.

I would be fascinated with this one's survival, but now wasn't the time. It was rather unfortunate that I had to kill it. Another unfortunate problem was that I couldn't use any of my magic, so I had to do this the old fashioned way.

Okay so this is more of an announcement than anything. This story has been rather rough on me. RWBY is definitely harder to write, for me personally, than the 100 story I wrote. That being said, chapters will be every two to three days from Chapter six onwards. I thank you for your understanding and continued viewing of this story.


	6. Chapter 6:Honor Thy Leader

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Six: Honor Thy Leader**

I Couldn't just charge in, that would be irresponsible, especially with the nevermore still circling overhead.

"There's nothing we can do here!" Yang looked at me sharply, thinking I might be able to do something. I shook my head and she nodded.

"We need to leave now!" She shouted.

"That's a much better idea. The objective Ozpin gave us was to retrieve the relics. We don't actually HAVE to kill the grimm." Weiss said. I tossed her the 'relic' for safe keeping. Where she put it, I have no idea. Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Run and live. Now that is a great idea." Jaune said enthusiastically, putting more doubt in my mind about his skill.

"Now! We have to leave!" Grabbing Yang's hand I began running, though at a normal human pace. The nevermore and deathstalker gave chase, the giant avian grimm launched its feathers at us, splitting up the groups between Weiss, Blake, Yang, myself, and Jaune, Nora, Pyrhha, and Ren.

Running through the forest, we were separated further when the forest broke into a larger temple built into the side of the cliff. My eyes widened.

This was the church I tried so hard to forget and nearly succeeded. The temple built in my honor where I slaughtered the church goers. There was blood everywhere for the briefest second, my hands felt slick with it and it was running down the walls. Bodies surrounded the dais, the boys body lying still.

I was dragged away from the memory by Yang pulling me towards the covered dais, I resisted at first, not wanting to step on the bloody stone, but it disappeared and the memory faded like ashes in the wind.

The nevermore screeched high above, sending down another flurry of feathers. Most of my other initiates were able to dodge them, All except Jaune, when a smaller feather sped faster than the rest and embedded itself in his thigh. The foot long feather slowed her down just enough for the death stalker to attempt to capitalize on injured prey, launching its stinger at the young man.

Pouring my magic into my semblance I sped as fast as I could, the air around me snapped as I blocked the stinger with the shaft of Crescent rose. While I still couldn't use my silver eyes, I could use my weapon and the natural strength I had. Gritting my teeth I pushed the stinger back.

Immortal I may be, but I inhumanly strong I was not.

"Yang!" I grit my teeth. "Get Jaune out of here! Pull the feather out so his aura can heal him!" If he was anything like Danielle, his aura reserve was massive.

Holding back the stinger until Jaune had been dragged away, gritting his teeth through the pain, I swiped the blade of my scythe downwards and caught the deathstalkers largest right eye. Jumping back and planting my scythe in the ground, I racked the bolt of my rifle and fired a shot into another of the deathstalkers eyes. It wasn't enough to blind it, but it slowed it down significantly.

I heard a scream behind me, Yang had yanked the nevermore feather out of Jaunes thigh, his aura working to heal it instantly. It didn't seem to be slowing down at all, so that meant he had an amazing pool to draw from.

The deathstalker roared loudly and the nevermore screeched above. This needed to end quickly, and I could've, if not for Ozpins stupid condition that the other students not learn about everything.

Rolling my eyes, I pulled Crescent rose out of the ground and collapsed it, running towards Yang, Blake, And Weiss.

"You three need to take care of the deathstalker!" I quickly took charge and commanded the three soon to be team members. Looking at Jaune I pointed at his future team. "Direct them! You Can't fight just yet so point out obvious things." Hopefully Danielle's tactical mind was another family trait.

"You three are with me! We're taking down that nevermore." My future team members nodded at me and we sprang into action.

Yang jumped onto the roof of the temple. And I screamed at her stupidity as she literally into the nevermore's beak and started firing her shotgun gauntlets, Ember Celica, into the things mouth.

It was going to be nearly impossible to keep my promise to tai at this rate.

Blake started firing from her swords gun form and Weiss was casting the dust of her rapier towards the giant bird. I provided as much support as I could with my large caliber sniper, but nothing seemed to faze the damn thing.

"This isn't working." I mumbled. Yang fell out of the sky, Blake launching her sword like a boomerang, which was attached to a ribbon. Yang caught the ribbon and was slung under the bridge before swinging back up. The nevermore crashed into the cliff, stunning itself.

"We need a new plan!" I could hear the other team delivering hits to the deathstalker, if they were doing any damage, I didn't know.

"Yang stand over by that pillar, Blake, toss your sword and ribbon to Yang, Weiss, freeze the tail to the cliff and get ready!" I shouted out orders. God it felt just like being in the war with Preto again. Everyone nodded, Blake tossed her sword and yang caught it before slamming it into the stone. Thank god blades were tougher these days.

Jumping up onto the ribbon I had Weiss use her glyphs to hold me in place.

"This is a giant slingshot, think you can make that shot?" I asked. She looked incredulously at my question.

"Of course I can!"

"You better. Now!" The glyph dissolved, launching towards the nevermore, using my rifle I gained more speed and Weiss' glyphs appeared on the cliffside, leading up to the edge. Planting my feet on the wall, I hooked the nevermore's neck in the blade of my scythe and started running. Using my semblance and a little bit of magic I was able to run faster up the cliff face without having to waste a lot of ammo. Just before I got to the top I tugged hard and let off a shot, feeling the blade as it cleaved through the neck of the nevermore.

I got airborne from my speed and landed in a crouched positing. Turning around I walked over to the edge, my cloak flapping in the wind.

Gotta love the dramatic timing.

Back in the auditorium, they announced Team CRDL, a bunch of assholes if I ever some em,' and team JNPR, made up of Jaune, Nora, Pyrhha, and Ren. I think I was just as surprised as Jaune when he was announced team leader. Though, he did have potential based on what I heard when his team was fighting the deathstalker.

Next was us.

"You all retrieved the White knight pieces. From this day forward, you will be known as team RWBY. Lead by: Ruby Rose." He gave the most imperceptible smirk.

Oh, he was so eating the shattered pieces of his favorite mug when I got the chance.

Weiss looked at me with anger, and while I couldn't care less for her anger, it was the problems it would make for the team that I was concerned about.

After the ceremony I sent a message on my scroll to Ozpin, asking if I could meet him in his office after I got my team settled.

"Alright girls," I said as I unlocked the door to our dorm room. "You all get ready for bed, I'm going out for a bit." I said simply.

"You just became team leader and you're already going out at night. Unbelievable!" Weiss accused. Breathing in through my nose I decided to calmly try and explain things.

"There will be times that I do this, yes. And because I'm team leader I have that right. If you have a problem take it up with Ozpin but don't bitch about it too me." I said tightly. Flicking the cape of my cloak, I walked down the hall and out of the dorm building. Crossing over the courtyard, I stopped at the statue for a brief second before walking to the elevator for Ozpins office. Glynda wasn't there, as it was late at night, so I just got on the elevator and went up.

The door opened and Ozpin was sitting at his desk, his hand supporting his face as he looked at me.

"What can I do for you Ruby. Do you prefer any other name. it was rude of me to assume that you would like to be called Ruby."

"Honestly I prefer that you call me by Ruby, as it is my current name. That's not the reason I'm here Ozpin. What the hell was that about today? I thought I was supposed to be lying low and using my team mates to blend in, not riding high as a team leader." I said with frustration. While I wouldn't pretend to know the mind of Ozpin, it was frustrating not being told his plans sometimes. I knew from the look on his face and the tone of his voice when he announced the team that I was always going to be team leader.

"Honestly the choice was solidified when your team first formed. Weiss was a good choice but she has no combat experience. Yang, while very intelligent, is more suited for a supporting role on a team. Blake is not a leader, preferring to work alone and striking from the shadows. You were the best choice out of all four because you have hundreds of years of combat and training under your belt. If you so chose to, you could make your team excellent combatants." He explained. It made sense, but I still didn't like it.

"What about my powers. I know we agreed that I would keep them hidden for now but since I'm team leader I have an obligation to disclose these things. But if I have to keep it a secret it will come out if my team is ever in danger. I will use either or both of my magics if it means my team gets to come home safe and sound." I explained. He nodded in understanding.

"While the chances of team RWBY being in serious combat are low, I cannot begrudge you for making any choices that saves the lives of your team mates." He said softly. I decided to change topics.

"Any change with Terra or the hunt for her attackers?" I asked. He pulled out his scroll and looked through the files on it.

"Not much. We were able to find a picture of the woman we believe to be the attacker. It's grainy and low quality, but it shows whoever this person is talking to Roman Torchwick." I growled. So these two were working together?

"What could it mean if they're working together, how did they even get in touch?" I asked.

"Right now Qrow is looking into the possible connections. I Know you don't care for the man, but Qrow is good at what he does." Ozpin said as my eyes flared at the mention of the old drunk, affectionately know by Yang as 'Drunkle Qrow.'

"My problem is his attitude. It rubs me wrong. And something always feels off with him" Was all that I offered. Ozpin nodded

"That would be his semblance. 'Bad luck' as he calls it. I feel the same thing too. Apparently my magic, and possibly yours, makes you immune to the effects of his semblance." I nodded. It sorta made sense?

"As for his attitude I can't really explain it, since it's his job to tell you his story." That's true. I knew a lot about Qrow Branwen, but not the man himself.

"Why did you lie to him about me?" I asked out of the blue. I was still kinda pissed about that. "No bullshit, just tell me why you lied to him." Ozpin breathed deeply before sighing.

"Qrow has always held me in a high regard, a role model that he never had growing up with Raven. It makes him rather defensive when it comes to me, as you saw, and makes me infallible in his eyes. If I told him the truth, which Raven learned and tried to tell him before he cut ties with her, it would destroy his hope that the world can be fixed. Right now, that hope is the only thing keeping him afloat. Without it, he'll drown in his demons." Suddenly I understood Qrow more, and I felt bad for the things I'd said in our earlier meeting. Sighing through my nose, I paused to consider his words.

"I understand your reasons. Truly I do, even though I'm not happy about it." Pausing for a few seconds I gathered myself. "I still don't appreciate that you lied to who knows how many people about me. You have to realize I have been alone for centuries, and I did search for you early on. But when I heard about a wizard and a dark queen I thought 'surely this can't be the champion!' do you understand now why I stopped trying to find you?" I asked.

"Yes. And I apologize for lying to an ally that you might have been able to use. Qrow is a good man. Hopefully now that the truth is out there we can all work together." He said earnestly. His face scrunched up in thought before he spoke again.

"Earlier when you were yelling, how did you know I'd wasted three lives."

Well shit. I had hoped to keep this a secret, but after my rant about being honest I had to tell him the truth.

"I call it 'sight.' I can use my silver eyed magic when looking in peoples eyes to see what they've seen. I looked into your eyes and saw everything I needed to see. It's very invasive and I'm surprised you didn't feel it."

"So it works on all humans?" He sounded surprised.

"Yes. It was very useful during the war." The implication of that was not lost on Ozpin.

"I see. Ruby I would like to talk to you about something from your past." Jumping straight into it are we?

"I would also like to feed you your mug by the way for sending me to the Temple. You knew. You knew what was there and you still did it anyway." I wasn't angry. Just…disappointed.

"I actually didn't. I had my suspicions, but I didn't know that the small and larger temples were dedicated to you."

"They were. Those villagers worshipped me as the 'eternal rose.' I didn't mind the title, because it gave them hope, but then they took it to far and I lost it. it was not my proudest moment." I hung my head in shame.

"Leave the past where it is." I felt Ozpins hand on my shoulder. "Learn to forgive yourself of these failings like I once did and move forward." He spoke his wisdom.

"You're right."

"This has been an eventful day Ruby. Go back to your team and get some rest." I nodded my head.

"Thanks Oz." I said quietly as I got up and headed to the elevator. He gave me a fond smile as the doors slid shut.

Sliding into the dark room, I saw a pair of Yellow eyes watching me, glinting in the pale moonlight. Smirking, I got into bed without even changing my clothes. I decided to mess with Blake a little bit.

"I know you're still awake." Her breathing picked up in surprise.

"How did you know?" Came her response a few seconds later.

"I've learned a few things over the years." I said cryptically. That wasn't a total lie. I'd learned how to do more than just listen though, but she wasn't ready to learn the truth yet.

"Oh. Well…I just thought I'd make sure you got in. Goodnight." She said before rolling over and going to sleep. I waited until her breathing evened out before going to sleep myself.

Waking up in the morning early, around seven, I got in the shower. Finishing up, I hopped out and wrapped a towel around myself, brushing my teeth and hair, before looking at my uniform.

"Oh god. I can't believe I'm gonna do this."

Throwing on the jacket after the shirt and neck ribbon, I tucked the shirt into my skirt, but not before pulling on a special belt and slipping my dagger, which may or may not double as a small gun, into the sheath that hid under the skirt and attached to my thigh. Waling over to Yangs bed I shook her awake.

"No. Five more minutes dad." She mumbled into her pillow. I flicked her ear, she mumbled again, though this time with more of an attitude. Rolling my eyes I flicked her all over the face pouring my semblance into my hand and arm, moving like a blur. She shot up, her eyes red with annoyance and anger before she looked at me and her eyes flickered back to lilac.

"It's time for you to be up. Your hair takes forever for you to get done. I already showered. The rest of the team is gonna help me unpack." I spoke softly. She blearily nodded, grabbing her multitude of hair products. Shaking Blake awake was easy but the biggest surprise was Weiss. She absolutely refused to get out of bed. How was I supposed to get her up.

A thought popped into my head.

"Weiss if you don't get up we'll get a poor grade." I deadpanned. Her head shot up so fast I worried it might pop off.

"I'm up!"

"Good. We're getting ready for classes. We could unpack now but we would be cutting it close for class time." I explained. It was already eight-fifteen and Weiss and Blake hadn't even showered yet. Banging on the door Yang shouted that she would hurry up. She was done in another five minutes, Blake said she could be quick so she was next.

When she said quick she literally meant ten minutes, though I suspected a bit of her time was dedicated to her ears, and she was out of the bathroom and dressed with her bow on her head.

Weiss was up next, and she took fifteen minutes, somehow looking the exact same as yesterday.

"Alright we definitely don't have time to unpack, so why don't we head to class since it's eight fifty, and we'll unpack when classes are done." I really didn't feel like being almost late, and being immortal had taught me how to be more time conscientious.

"What's our first class, Rubes?" Yang said enthusiastically.

"Grimm studies at nine so we should be going now." I said as I walked out the door. We would have to miss breakfast but now that I knew how long Weiss and Blake took in the mornings I could adjust accordingly.

We walked past the dining hall, and I used my semblance to grab us some muffins.

"Thanks Rube's!" Yang said as she bit off half the muffin.

"Yang slow down." She choked down her food. "Sorry."

Thanks Ruby." Weiss said politely.

"Yeah. Thanks." Blake added on

Walking into professor ports class, I wracked my brain, thinking I had heard his name somewhere. Looking at him I realized I was mistaken, he just had one of those names and faces, not that you could see much of it to begin with.

Team JNPR burst into the room just as he was about to start class. Allowing the team to take their seats, he began the lesson.

It was completely unremarkable, not to mention fairly self-serving. After bragging about capturing a live beowulf and hitting on Yang at one point, he finally decided to begin actually teaching. Briefly going over several of the grimm types, he asked for a volunteer from the class to demonstrate the qualities of a true huntsman. Weiss' hand immediately shot up.

"I do sir!"

Oh this should be good.

Not.

To anyone who recognized where I got the mug scene from; don't really win anything but you have great taste in stories :)


	7. Chapter 7: Burden of Leadership

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Seven: Burden of Leadership**

"I do sir!"

Oh this should be good.

Not.

It was then that I noticed the squealing and grunting coming from the corner of the small arena. A cage, shaking and jolting with the force off whatever was inside. It wasn't big so it ruled out anything bigger than a beowulf. A young nevermore, maybe.

No.

A boarbatusk. It shouldn't be a challenge to even beginner hunters and huntresses.

As Weiss was moving past me I grabbed her wrist. She tensed up at the sudden contact and looked down at me sharply, unbelieving that I had the audacity to tough her.

"It's a boarbatusk. Get it from the back or the belly. No showboating, just kill it." I said, turning back towards the arena before she could even argue. She stomped down the steps in a huff, heading to the changing room for her gear.

Walking back out into the arena, all confidence and swagger without any substantial personality of her own. Only what her father had tried to raise her to be.

I watched on quietly as Blake and Yang cheered her on, observing in a way that I couldn't out in the emerald forest. Don't even ask me why Blake was cheering her on or where she got the tiny flag that spelled out RWBY.

I noticed that she was, again, readying her combat stance. At least it was at a much faster pace than last time. The boarbatusk burst out of the cage when Port broke the lock, stopping in the middle of the small arena to size Weiss up. It decided it had enough and charged, Weiss slashing at the heavily armored side.

Gods damnit.

"Ha ha. Wasn't expecting that, were you!" Port laughed. And then she did the one thing I specifically told her not to; She tried to show off her skill to the teacher. Charging head on at the heavily armored pig, her rapier got caught in the tusks. Struggling for a minute, I shook my head as the boarbatusk tore her weapon free from her hands.

"Ho ho! Bold new approach!" Gods someone needed to shut him up. Narrowing my eyes I sat forward, head cradled in my hands as I observed.

"Shouldn't you help her or something?" Yang asked. She sounded unsure and for good reason. But I believed that Weiss could do it, but I certainly wasn't going to go easy on her if she won. Breathing through my nose I let just the briefest flash of silver light filter from my eyes, unnoticeable to the human eye, but the pig definitely felt it, and stalled for a second, allowing Weiss the opportunity to scramble to her weapon. Upon retrieval, she conjured two of her glyphs. Defending with one, the boarbatusk bounced off and onto it's back. Jumping into another one that turned black, she launched herself at the exposed belly, killing it near instantly.

"Bravo! It appears we are in the presence of a true huntress-in-training." Port shouted. Weiss was breathing heavily from the ordeal. Port gave some speech that didn't sound half bad, but I was already standing, glaring at Weiss as she limped off in a huff.

"Weiss!" I called out when we were in the hallway.

"What do you want!" She said with her usual attitude. Marching up to her I shoved a finger in her face.

"Listen here and listen well! Get that stick out of your ass before I rip it out and beat you within an inch of your life with it!" I spat at her. she backed into the wall, her eyes wide as I spoke.

"Now I don't know what your problem is with me, but I am your leader, and I have worked just as hard if not harder than you to be here!" I shouted. That reignited the fire in her eyes.

"That's just it! you've done nothing but come up with some stupid plan that killed a nevermore! You're not a leader, you're just lucky!" Now I saw red.

"You know why Ozpin chose me and not you?" I growled out.

"Oh do tell." She said snobbishly. I leaned into her ear.

"It's because I've seen actual combat, the likes of which would give you nightmares." I hissed. She reeled back as if she'd been slapped. "Here, we respect the position, repecting the one holding it is secondary." I grit through my teeth before I stormed off in a flurry of rose petals.

It was sometime later when Ozpin found me, sitting in the shade of Indi's cloak.

"I've forgotten how frustrating humans can be." I confessed.

"They are a baffling bunch." He admitted "But I sense that's not all that's bothering you."

"You're right. I don't know if I can lead a team again. They aren't Indi, Lavender, Auby, or Sage. They're children, and while we had ours issues at the start, they were already a good team, just one without a leader." I said.

"Give it time. When I first became headmaster I tried to make teams based off of who I thought would work the best. As time went on I realized that it wasn't always about compatibility, but also about how it all balanced. So I started making the teams based on skill and then forcing them to cooperate. It was quite the radical change to the random selection that beacon has had over the centuries." He said.

"Is it wrong that I want to make them like MY team?" I asked quietly.

"There's nothing wrong with wanting that. Nothing wrong with missing them either." He said knowingly. I nodded slowly.

"It's only been a day. Give it time and you'll see." He said as he stood up, his cane in one hand and coffee in another.

"You reincarnate and I'm immortal. And yet you still find time to teach me something new, old man." I said with a smirk.

"There's always something to learn Ruby. You just have to know where to look." He said, his cane tapping as he walked away.

I stood staring at the statues of my friends until the sun set below the horizon. Taking a deep breath, I walked back to the dorm room at a normal pace so that I could think about what I could be potentially walking into.

What I got was not what I expected.

Clothes were everywhere, mostly Yang's, and there were posters and books in piles. The worst though were the beds piled into the center of the room.

"What the hell is going on here!" I asked.

Blake, Yang, and Weiss all looked at me with wide eyes. Yang took the hit.

"Well we were unpacking and ran out of space." She said, trying to sound completely innocent but failing spectacularly.

"So…what are we doing for sleeping arrangements?" I asked, faux sweetness dripping from my mouth.

"Well we could get rid of some things." Weiss looked at Blake like she just suggested murdering a small animal.

"No. We'll make bunkbeds. And before anyone disagrees it's the best option for space. So let's get to work." I said clapping my hands.

The finished result was less bunkbed and more deathtrap by the end, which was why I called the top bunk not being held up by books, but the one being held to the frickin ceiling by rope. At least the rope was wrapped around some sturdy studs.

Thank you accidental hut destruction for construction skills.

Sleeping that night was less than pleasant though, as my melancholy about the team situation had brought up many unpleasant memories.

" _Commander Rose! Save us!"_

" _This is your fault! Everything you come in contact with withers and dies!"_

" _Where were you when we needed you!"_

" _My son is dead because of you Humans! He was a sweet boy who never got into trouble!"_

" _I'm so sorry Preto…There was nothing anybody could do."_

 _Yang's POV_

I was woken up by thrashing on the other side of the room, my eyes snapping open instantly. Weiss was awake, judging by her light breathing, and listen to Ruby's tormented sleep. Getting up, I was about to climb up when Weiss stopped me.

"Yang?"

"Yeah?"

"Does that happen often?" She sounded insecure, unlike the Weiss I had known over the last day and a half.

"Not every night, but pretty often…"I said quietly. I knew Blake was awake, but it being late at night I didn't want to hurt her ears or anything like that. Feeling my way to Ruby's bunk, I climbed up gently and wrapped her in soft embrace, being careful to avoid Ruby's thrashing. It was risky, I knew, but sometimes allowing Ruby's physical body to hit something during her night terrors brought her peace while she was in them.

"It's okay Ruby. They can't hurt you because it's all in the past." I whispered in her ear. I knew Ruby would hate that she had revealed something so personal about herself this early on, but it was done now, and I had to help Ruby ride it out. The worst thing that could happen is if she woke up and didn't recognize anyone in the room. It had only happened a few times with me, but when it did it was terrifying.

Suddenly, she began muttering in Managerian, quietly, but loud enough that Blake heard it because I heard her shift in surprise, and then Ruby shot up in bed, her eyes glowing ever so slightly.

"NO!" She screamed, Sweating and breathing heavily. I touched her shoulder and thankfully she recognized me as she collapsed into the bed, a sniffling mess of snot and silent tears. As if the Gods answered me, Blake and Weiss kept quiet, allowing Ruby to fall bac asleep. The bed below us creaked and I angled my head to look at Weiss.

"Is that part of the whole 'I'm leader because I've been in combat that would give you nightmares'?" I nodded at her slowly.

"Ruby will talk about it when she's ready. Please don't ask her anything about this at all. It won't end well. In the meantime, Weiss, sleep in my bed since I'm not sure if this thing will hold up to mine and Ruby's weight." I said. Weiss nodded, gathering her pillow and blanket before slipping into my bed.

"The same goes for you as well, Blake. Let Ruby bring it up."

"Okay." Was the only response I got.

Ruby stayed asleep most of the night, only having the occasional fit, barely enough to wake me up as I held her gently.

 _Ruby POV_

Waking up at seven-fifteen, I knew what had happened when I found Yang's arms wrapped around me. Sighing, I carefully pulled myself away from her arms and took a shower. I just stood there, letting the water beat against my skin for a solid five minutes before I actually decided to get clean.

Stepping out of the shower, I saw that everyone was awake and staring at me.

"Not creepy at all." I mumbled under my breath.

"You alright Rube's?"

"Yeah, little dragon, I'm fine." I said as I got dressed. "Everyone get ready. Doesn't matter in what order you shower but be down at the cafeteria by eight-fifteen. We have combat with Goodwitch today so be ready. I'm getting breakfast." I announced and walked out the door.

Everyone arrived at eight-fifteen, likely because Yang understood the kind of mood I was in and made everyone act accordingly. She was the best sister I could have, even if she wasn't blood.

The rest of the team ate in silence once they sat down, likely knowing again from Yang that I wasn't in any mood to talk. Team JNPR walked in and I put my head down on the table, my cloak muffling the noise of Nora's hyperactivity until I heard Yang shush her. Breakfast proceeded quietly after that and we all proceeded to combat class together once everyone was finished eating.

Combat class was what I expected, Glynda never calling on me for fear that I would absolutely embarrass any team solo.

Which I totally would, even without my semblance. Was it cocky to think that? Yes. Did I care? Hell no.

I watched in anger as Jaune got humiliated by Cardin and I resolved to make the bastard pay.

Thankfully the moment came when Nora was reciting her weird dream about selling Ursa skin rugs when I noticed that team CRDL had surrounded a faunus. Velvet scarlatina to be specific. As everyone else was talking about Cardin being a bully, he began mocking Velvet, making me angrier and angrier. The faunus would always hold of place of special care in my heart, and nobody messed with them when I was around. I reached my breaking point when velvet cried out, Cardin pulling on her ears.

Gritting my teeth, I jumped up, rocketing toward Cardin with my semblance and landed a punch to the gut which sent him flying. Deciding to thrash him further, I sped to where he landed on the other side of the cafeteria. I distantly heard the shouts of Yang and Weiss telling me to stop. Picking him up and dragging him by the hair, I held his head over the table edge before smashing him face first through the wood, taking out a nice chunk in the process and shattering his aura.

All in a matter of seconds.

Taking deep heaving breaths I looked to the rest of CRDL.

"Unlike your dumbass team leader, I read the handbook. 'All students are to deal with bullies as they see fit.' Now before I see to fit my foot up your ass I suggest you run." I growled, my eyes looking widely at them in anger. It didn't take a fool to see I meant business and they ran. Calming down I slowly walked over to velvet. Holding out my hand I asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yes. Thank you." She said simply.

"Ruby rose." I introduced myself.

"Velvet scarlatina." She said in her accent.

"I'm sorry he did that to you. Would you like to sit at our table?" I offered, idly noticing that Blake was watching me with interest.

"No. I should be heading back to my team anyway." She said quickly.

"Well alright then. You're more than welcome to join us at anytime though." I said, walking away and leaving the unconscious Winchester on the floor.

Sitting down like nothing happened, I felt literally everyone staring at me.

"What? I don't like bullies." I said as I took a bite out an apple.

Everyone looked away quickly, going back to their conversations.

Soon it was time for professor ooblecks class. I didn't really have much to say about the man because his family was relatively small, nothing in particular ever really happened and he was an average hunter. His true talent laid in history though, as he was one of the few that could even hope to keep up with Ozpin and I.

He began his lesson rather enthusiastically.

"Prior to the faunuas rights revolution, more populary known as the faunus wars, many faunus did not have a place to call their own as they were primarily used as slave labor. However, afterwards, the Faunus had to find a place to settle, and as the island continent of menagerie was unpopulated, and no other kingdom would take them in, they settled there. Now! While this might sound like ancient history, we have to remember that these events have happened in the last hundred years And that the repercussions can still be seen to this day! ." He reminded. Thank gods he didn't seem to know that the continent of menagerie itself is recent history, though thankfully I had done a good job of covering that up.

"Have any of you been subjugated or discriminated against because of your faunus heritage?"

I had to be really careful in this class about what I say. At his question I noticed that one other student, who I couldn't recognize at all, and Velvet raised her hand. Blakes bow twitched ever so slightly and her hand lifted off the desk by a few centimeters before she remembered she was hiding herself. Which reminded me that I still had to talk with Khali.

"Dreadful! Simply dreadful! Remember students it is exactly this kind of ignorance that breeds violence!"

"Good lord this guy used every word out of his mouth as a teaching moment. Not that I was complaining but still, it constantly kept getting him off track, and this guy was a few tracks short of a full railroad already. He took a sip of his coffee, which he didn't really need.

"I mean, I mean, I mean, just look at what happened to the white fang!" Weiss turned her nose up at that statement.

Oh joy. This would be fun when Blakes secret came out.

"Now, which one of you young scholars can tell me what many historians believe to be the turning point in the near the end of the second year of the war!" I kept my hand down, but Weiss' shot up, and he called on her.

"Yes!"

"The battle of fort castle!" God what a dumb name. Whoever decided on that name should be shot. Oh wait. He was.

"Can anyone tell me the advantage the faunus had over general legumes forces?"

Jaune spoke up in annoyance when Cardin flicked him in the head with a paper football. Asshole. I was satisfied to see the large lump on his head

"Yes! Mr. Arc! Finally contributing to the class! Excellent! Excellent! What is the answer?"

What proceeded was one of the most painful and awkward things I had ever heard. Jaune answered like someone was trying to pull teeth from his mouth. He looked over Ooblecks shoulder and I followed his vision to see Pyhhra pointing to her eyes. No way was he going to get this.

"UH binoculars." I facepalmed.

Oh gods help this child.

I loved when Blake and Pyhhra teamed up to destroy Cardin's pride, but he was a vengeful person, and I knew I would have to watch their backs for them.

I willed Jaune to shut up and stop giggling, but it didn't work and he got detention with Cardin. Oh this was fantastic.

Honestly I wondered why Ozpin let him into this school. He wasn't ready in any regard. Though knowing Ozpin, he had his reasons. Maybe I should talk to him and see what his plans are for the boy.

Class went on with nothing of interest after that. Everyone packed up and left when the bell rang, except for Jaune and Cardin. I told everyone to head off once we were around the corner and they left. I stayed behind to wait for Pyhhra and Jaune. I didn't have to wait long for a white shirt and black pants to run by me, honestly it was like they were trying to keep up with Oobleck. I cauht sight of Jaune and Pyhhra running around the corner to the roof access of the building we were in.

What I heard was a proposal from a friend, a denial, and an admittance of one's guilt. My eyes widened in surprise when Jaune admitted he had faked his transcripts.

How could Ozpin gamble with this man's life!

I used my semblance when Pyhhra finally gave up and left, passing right by the door I was hiding behind. I was about to leave myself when I heard voices again.

"Oh Jaune. I couldn't help but overhear everything from my dorm room."

That son of a bitch.

My eyes widened when I realized what I had been forgetting for a month now.

Saphron.

In my own grief I had forgotten about Terra's wife. Saphron Arc. Jaunes oldest sister.

I had been selfishly stuck in my own anger, grief, and caught up in the whirlwind that had become beacon and my wife. I didn't stick around to hear the rest of the conversation because I needed to talk to Ozpin ASAP.

Barging past Glynda before she could even react, I charged into Ozpin's office with Tears in my eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me about Jaune." He took a deep breath, turning away from James ironwood who I just now noticed was in the room.

"I had hoped to tell you at some point, but with Terra being in the state she's in-"

"And another thing…Does Saph know?" He shook his head slowly in shame. I buried my anger, because he likely felt the same way I did. Her little brother was at beacon where he wasn't ready, and her wife was sitting in a vault.

"Do you know what will happen if we transfer the powers to Pyhhra?" I asked, already dreading the answer because I suspected I already knew.

"Through further testing and predictions, we determined that Terra will likely die if we drain her powers." He said, voice thick with sadness.

"Would I work if I gave her some of mine?" I asked desperately.

"I have no idea. But we can try."

I

So yeah. Episode seven happened…and the character of Terra was kinda made but with no real backstory before Terra Cotta came into existence. Oops. So I've decided to roll with it, which I know has unfortunately meant this part might feel shoehorned in but I'm happy with it. It threw a wrench in my plans temporarily, but what can you do. That was sort of the intention when I was writing this story, that it would kinda introduce volume six into volume one as it happened. So yeah. I won't say that LGBT characters will be immune in my story, they'll just have a higher survival rate than others.

To everyone who caught my 'guilty rose' reference, great job. You uhhh…you don't win anything, but you do have great taste in stories.


	8. Chapter 8: Healing

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go towards Rooster teeth.**

 **So I owe some people an apology. Specifically, anyone that doesn't have RTfirst. I forgot to post a spoiler warning and I am terribly sorry. I will try and remember to do that from now on, but also, if I forget, assume that there are likely spoilers in the chapter. Speaking of,**

 **Spoiler warning.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter eight: Healing**

"This has to work. Or at least, I hope it does. Because I don't know what I'm going to do if it doesn't." I admitted to Ozpin as we rode the elevator down to the vault.

"Be prepared that it doesn't Ruby. What you're attempting has never been done before. Even I can't do it." Ozpin warned. I took his warning seriously, but I had to try.

The elevator stopped and opened, I immediately zipped over to Terra. She was still unresponsive, just as I had suspected, but this could possibly heal her. it won't give her the powers that were stolen back, but at least she'll be alive.

"Take my hand Oz." I said. He walked up and grabbed my hand, holding it gently.

"Grab Terra's other hand and focus your magic into her. Focus on healing thoughts." I instructed. I felt him using his magic, and I understood why he hadn't attempted it. Terra was filled with dark energy. But worst of all? There was something there that shouldn't have been.

A grimm.

Or more specifically, toxin left over from the one that attacked her.

Realizing this, I poured a little of my magic into my free hand I put it to her forehead. Letting my magic wash over her, I watched her convulse, but the scar on her face began healing and her breathing got a little better. Finally she screamed and went limp, a little puff of smoke coming off her. Examining her again, I detected no grimm presence in her body. She was breathing better immediately, what was left of her maiden powers doing as much as it could to heal it's host. Terra coughed. It was weak but I let out a cry of relief.

Terra was alive and not in a deep coma anymore

"Terra? Terra can you open your eyes for me honey? Or squeeze my hand to at least let me know you can hear me." I asked. I got a weak head nod and a small squeeze. I cant even begin to contain my emotions.

"I was so scared we'd lost you." I whispered. She opened her eyes, barely, but I could still make out her brown eyes.

"What happened? I feel like I was hit by goliath." She whispered.

"You were attacked. A woman…stole…half your maiden powers. I'm so sorry. If I had known this would heal you I would've done it sooner. There was a toxin in you, keeping you from healing, but I used my magic to burn it out." I explained. She tried to sit up but I stopped her.

"How long have I been unconscious." I hesitated at the question since I didn't really know the answer because it had happened before I even learned of what happened. So, I looked at Ozpin.

"You've been in a coma for a little over a month." Ozpin said calmly.

Well terra wasn't calm. Her weak maiden powers activated, wreathing her eyes in weak flames. There was barely any color, and if I didn't know she was summer, I might've been tempted to think they were winters flames.

"Does Saph know?" Ozpin hesitated before shaking his head and Terra was pissed. She forced herself off the bed, and I was only just able to catch her before she fell face first.

"Somebody get me a godsdamned scroll so I can call my wife!" She shouted hoarsely. Ozpin was quick to comply, hoping to stay on Terra's good side. I didn't do anything because I was on thin ice already.

Dialing Saph, Terra waited for her to respond.

Apparently, it went straight to voicemail because Terra left a message saying that she was alive and would be home soon.

"You're taking me home." Terra said, a glare that could scare a dragon, but I was totally not scared at all. Nope

Okay maybe a little pee cam out when the glare came my way.

"Of course. I've been meaning to talk to someone up near Argus anyway." I said. Terra nodded. "I'm gonna carry you up until I can find something to push you around in. Ozpin, the nurses have wheelchairs?" I asked.

"Yes. I'll call and let them know to have one sent to my office." Ozpin said as he sent a message on his scroll.

Picking Terra up with ease, I carried her to the elevator.

"What was James doing here earlier? You haven't told him about me have you?" I asked cautiously.

"No. He knows of you, as most of the circle do, but he doesn't know you're here now or what you look like." Ozpin said placatingly. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Although he might be suspicious if he's still in my office. He definitely saw you go enter the elevator." The man said. I sighed. James was a decent man, but he was Atlas, and I never really trusted the pompous people of Atlas because of their ego's. Besides, if James knew that I had purposely hidden the relic of destruction form them, he might hold a grudge, and an Atleasian with a grudge was a headache. I managed to get rid of one headache, I did not need another.

The elevator doors opened and James thankfully wasn't there. A wheelchair was waiting and I gently set Terra into it.

"Stay here. I'm gonna go pack a bag for the trip." I said as I patted her shoulder. Her voice stopped me as I walked towards the door.

"Ruby?"

"Hm?"

"Thanks."

I smiled and turned around, heading to my dorm room

"What do you mean you're leaving for a few days?!" Weiss screeched. Honestly if I wasn't positive that the bow limited Blakes hearing, I would be worried that it might be damaged now tanks to Weiss.

"I don't have to explain myself." I said with authority. Yang understood, so she kept quiet, Blake just eyed me suspiciously.

"You're our leader and you're just gonna go galivanting off to who knows where?!"

"Yes. There's a schedule on each of your beds that I expect you to follow while I'm gone. I WILL know if you don't." I said to Yang.

"There's nothing on our-"

My speed cut off Weiss' quick assumption that there wasn't really a schedule when I sped around the room and placed two copies each on their beds. The door slamming must've let them all know I'd left. Speeding up to Ozpins office I zipped in and grabbed Terra before she could even blink. Laughing when she realized what was going on, I sped up more and more until we were at the airship that would take us to the Argus train.

The flight was pretty boring, Terra was tired so she slept most of the ride. I just contemplated how she had forgotten to talk to Saph and let her know what had been going on. I felt guilty that I had let myself forget that Saph _might_ be worried about her wife and that just a single word from me might've helped assuage her worries. It was almost three hours later when we arrived at the train station. I paid an assistant to take their bags while I pushed Terra in the wheelchair.

Unfortunately, our train wasn't for an hour, So they both meandered around the little shops that showcased some Atlesian specialties. A red scarf made from the wool of Atlesian sheep, some pastries while we waited, and holograms everywhere of Atlas' military droids. Those things would never be able to be as reliable as real soldiers. One time I had hacked into them for the fun of it, making them give the one finger salute to Ironwood whenever he walked by.

It took him a week to realize they weren't saluting him properly.

I was broken out of my funny memory when I heard a cane tapping on the ground. Normally I wouldn't have thought anything of it, until it stopped in front of me. I noticed the thick wooden cane first, the long blue dress next, and the mechanical blinking of her eyes.

"Holy shit! What are you doing here!" I got up and hugged the older woman.

"Saphron called me about three weeks ago. Couldn't get in touch with you or Terra. I went over to her place as soon as I could. I stayed there for a week until I had to go home for a bit. I'm headed back to their place now. I see Terra is looking a little worse for wear." The old woman scrutinized, her eyes narrowing.

"Lay off me Maria. It's been no bed of roses. No pun intended." Terra laughed at her own words. I sent a mock glare and Maria just didn't do anything. A stoic huntress, even if she was retired. Shoving the memories away of why she was retired, I focused back on Maria and Terra.

"I'm sorry this happened to you child." Maria said.

"It's not your fault. You or Ruby. I just hope that Saph can forgive me for being gone so long." Terra looked down. Cupping her cheeks gently I pulled her face so she was looking at me.

"Saph loves you deeply. She wouldn't be pregnant for you if she didn't. If anything I cn just let her blame me. My shoulders are broad enough to take it." I told her. Maria spoke up.

"Saphron has been worried sick about you, at her wits end asking everyone she can to try and find you." Maria said. Terra nodded, but she was still worried. Trying to turn the conversation, I looked to Maria.

"How've you been? Anything I need to know?" I asked

"I've been fine. Don't worry about an old lady like me. I may be old but I'm still a huntress who can teach you a thing or two!" I balked at her statement.

"Wha-Who taught who in this situation. I remember you as a little pipsqueak, taking up your family's legacy when you were finally old enough and seeking me out to train you. Gods I swear, you kid's today are so quick to forget your elders!" I teased. "See, two can play the age card Maria, and I think I win in that department." I stuck my tongue out at her, pulling a goofy face. She took it in stride and smacked me in the shin with her cane.

"Really." I gave her a deadpan look. "You're the stereotypical old lady you know that. Do you scream at children to get off your lawn?" I teased further. She scoffed.

"I don't have children on my lawn to worry about because they all know what'll happen if they do." She said smugly.

"No one's gotta be worried with us around." A voice came from behind me. Turning around, there were two huntsmen behind me, one with a gun and the other with a mace. Sighing I looked fully at the two cocky asses.

"What the hell do you want?"

"I'm Dee and this is Dudley." The guy with the mace, Dee, spoke. "The Argus Limited's very own huntsmen. We'll be keeping everyone safe while we pass through grimm territory." Apparentl that was Dudleys cue to jump in.

"Buuuut for an extra generous tip, we'll make sure your passenger cart get's extra special attention." He smirked. Gods this day just got dumber and way more frustrating. Making up my mind, I pulled out crescent rose. Speeding to the two I pointed the small blade at the end of crescent rose's shaft and the blade of my scythe at each of their respective crotches, I spoke sweetly.

"How about for an extra generous tip, I don't circumcise you right here." My voice in a higher pitch than was natural.

"Say Dee I think these ladies are very well protected with a huntress of their own. Let's go that way." Dudley said as he put a hand on his friend's shoulder and began backing away slowly.

"Good choice boys." I called as they ran away.

"Really Ruby, was that necessary?" Maria said.

"Nope, but I don't regret it!" A large grin on my face spoke the truth.

The bell for our train sounded, and we boarded without issue. It would be almost a day before we reached the city of Argus, so thankfully there were beds to sleep on. I didn't sleep, but I did watch over Terra and Maria. The grimm didn't attack thankfully, but they did come close several times. Thank the gods for small favors I suppose. Maria woke up early the next morning.

"We passed out of grimm territory about an hour ago." I mumbled.

"Did you stay awake all night?" The disapproval was clear as day.

"Yes." There was no sense in lying to her, she'd just call bullshit on me anyway. "Besides, there's no adverse health effects and you know it." I said defensively. She glared at me before emuttering about something or another. Feeling a bit petty, I stuck my tongue out at her.

"Saw that!" She called out as she entered the bathroom.

"Gods I swear it's like she installed eyes in the back to." I mumbled. Terra began to stir and I was beside her quickly.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better. Powers still feel weak." She said as she only managed to summon a small flame.

"We'll fix this. We'll find the woman who did it and return your powers to you." I said. Terra looked at me, like she couldn't believe I was this hopeful. If anything, I was unsure. Would the powers go to another person and there be two summer maidens or would killing the woman return Terra's powers? This had never happened before, so I didn't know, and not knowing scared me.

"I trust you." Terra said. I nodded, and felt the train beginning to pull into the station. Getting off, unloading our things, then boarding a trolley, we got off as close as we could to Terra's house. Too bad Argus was mostly hills, and Terra lived on a hill. Gritting my teeth, I couldn't leave Maria behind so I just pushed at a normal pace. It wasn't terrible, but it sucked by the time we got to the top of the hill.

I knocked on the door to the house, and I could hear a slow shuffling inside. The peephole on the door got dark, suggesting Saphron had seen us, and then the door flew open. Saphron, pregnant belly and all, ran out like a shot from crescent rose and embraced Terra with a passion only two lovers could have. A small part of me was jealous, wishing that I could have this but knowing I never realistically could.

Another part of me stung, as the slap I never saw coming impacted my cheek, throwing my head to the side. I looked angrily at whoever had the balls to hit me, seeing Saphron looking shocked with her hand in the air.

"OW!" I exclaimed. The look I gave her demanding an explanation.

"Well! You should've answered my messages!" She said incredulously. "And I'm sorry for hitting you, I thought you'd dodge like you always do after you do something to piss me off!" She defended. I glared at her, before softening my face and wrapping her in a gentle hug, careful of the baby bump.

"I'm so sorry. I got caught up in my own emotions about Terra and being at beacon and having a team again and being on a team with Blake and seeing Ozpin. I'm so sorry. Can you forgive me?" To make it harder for her to say no I gave my best pout. Nobody could ever resist this!

"Oh alright! Just stop pouting! That's more lethal than you are." She said, laughing like she was some kind of comedian.

"Come inside. All of you. I'll make some tea and we can talk."

Talking and drinking tea for nearly three hours as I did my best to explain everything was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Especially when I got to an important part.

"Oh by the way Jaune is doing okay in his classes. Sucks at combat class though but everything else is going okay, in case you were wondering." Saphrons face told me all I needed to know.

"Ohhhh…it wasn't you that helped him get the forged transcripts, was it?" Jaune and Saphron were a rare relationship. She would do anything for him, her being the oldest and him being the only boy in the family. It was a unique relationship and they told each other everything. Well…almost.

"What? What are you talking about?" The room was deathly quite as Saphron gave me her legendary glare.

Uh oh. I sucked it up and spilled everything I knew.

"It wasn't me. I actually tried to talk Jaune out of it when he came to me."

"If it wasn't you then I'm pretty sure I know who it was." I was thinking of graying hair and a nice suit that was gonna look real ugly when I was done with it, though I was mostly angry for Saphrons sake.

This would be a conversation that was needed. A long with a few other things.

Getting up, I pulled out my scroll and told Ozpin I'd be calling in a minute.

"I'm afraid I can't stay. Ozpin and I have a lot to discuss but I don't feel comfortable leaving you here by yourselves. I'm gonna have Ozpin send a few of his agents to protect you, possibly have you go to Atlas itself for you protection. But I have to be going." I explained.

We all said our goodbyes, Saphron being the last to hug me.

"Thank you for bringing her back." She whispered.

"I wish I could've done it sooner." I confessed before we broke apart. Pulling away, I walked down the sidewalk to the trolley and pulled out my scroll.

"Oz, I need a favor. As long as Terra is home she's gonna need protection. As many of your agents as you can spare.

" _I can spare Qrow and Winter. Both are extremely close to your area right now and should make it quickly."_ Ozpin said.

"I know Qrow but who's Winter?" I asked

" _She's Weiss' older sister and a specialist in Atlas' military. One of the best actually."_

"Alright. Send them here. I'm on my way back to Beacon." I said and hung up. I decided to stick around the terminal, slipping into the bathroom and pulling my white cloak, that I forgot I had slipped into the pocket dimension, out and exchanged it for my red cloak. If Winter was Weiss' sister, it would be best to minimize the amount of recognition. Sighing, I pulled out my old helmet from the war, a red and white mask, not to dissimilar from Ravens. The biggest difference was that mine didn't cover my whole face.

Placing it on my face, it still fit amazingly well. It resembled a grimm, the first grimm mask, and the one most others are based off of. The difference though was that hers was based off a Grimm she had hunted to near extinction; The Nuckelavee. Specifically, the rider. The horns wrapped over the hood of my white cloak, the red lines glowing and leading to Black pools where the normally red eyes should be. It was a mask meant to intimidate more than conceal. The horns were shorter, much like a young nuckelavee and the canines in the mouth of already sharpened teeth were elongated to wrap around my cheeks. All in all it was a pretty terrifying image. Sitting in the bathroom with it on she remembered the last time she had really worn it, at fight between general legume and Preto.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped out of the bathroom with her hood up and mask on, and hid in the shadows of the barely busy train terminal. Anyone who was around scattered quickly and she waited for Qrow and winter to arrive.


	9. Chapter 9: Tear it Down

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Nine: Tear it Down**

 **So its a bit late and I apologize, but at least I'm done with finals now.**

Qrow was the first to arrive at the station and he recognized me more by body image than my face or eyes. He soffed when he saw the mask.

"You know, it's a crime in Atlas to even posses a mask given out by the 'fang." He drawled.

"I'm well aware Qrow. But this was the only way I have to meet with your partner and not be recognized lady." I said sweetly.

"Partner? Lady I work alone." I was well aware of that, but this was not a one-man job.

"I'm well aware of your skills and determination to be a one-man army, but at some point you'll have to realize that being alone is one of the worst things in the world, especially when you don't have to be." I said calmly.

"Who am I working with?" He sighed.

"Me unfortunately." A woman in a white combat suit spoke behind him. Qrow grit his teeth at the voice and slowly turned around, almost hoping she would go away if he took long enough.

"Winter." He greeted with a roll of his eyes.

"Qrow." She was just as frigid as her name implied.

"You two are going to be working together to protect Terra while she recovers. Same goes for Saphron, her wife, and unborn child. All of them are incredibly vulnerable right now with Terra being weakened. I suspect whoever did this will want to finish the job. That can't happen." I summed up what they would be doing. Winter, it seemed, only just noticed me.

"And what is someone from the likes of the white fang doing ordering me around?" She asked with a snarl on her lips. If we weren't pressed for time I might think it was hot, but alas.

"I'm not from the 'fang. I am however someone who understands the dire situation we face if Terra is killed by the woman who attempted to steal her powers in the first place. As for the mask itself, a girls gotta keep some secrets."

"I don't answer to cowards behind masks." She snarled again.

"Then you'll answer to a maiden!" I lost my patience with her because now wasn't the time to argue and Terra was in danger every moment she wasn't being guarded. To get my point across, the orange flames began to leak out the blackened eye sockets, looking like flaming eyes, just as I had intended. Winter's eyes widened and she backed down, nodding.

"Good. As I was saying, Terra needs protection. Ozpin trusts the two of you to do it. I'm altering the plan slightly from here though. When it gets closer to the Vytal festival, you both will be coming to beacon with Terra and Saphron. I'll be in touch if the plan needs to change any more after this." I said. They nodded, accepting this easily for some reason. Walking away from them, I could feel the tension behind me.

Gods those two needed to just do it already, honestly.

Taking off my mask, I placed it into the pocket dimension, and stiffened when I felt like I was being watched. I dismissed it however because there were to many people here and I tried to get lost in the crowd.

Hopping on the train back to Haven was easy. Again, I still didn't sleep. This train was too exposed to the grimm for too long for my liking and the people were uneasy for some reason. It was understandable when there were reports of a massive sphinx in the area. I never saw anything though, so I guess the rumors weren't true.

Eventually I got off the train in Haven, a place I hadn't really taken the time to enjoy for a long time. Today it seemed I still wouldn't have the chance as I had to get back to beacon otherwise Weiss might have some kind of aneurysm, have her aura heal it, then have another just to say that she had two because of me.

Boarding a public transport, I became aware of someone watching me again, but I couldn't pick out who exactly. Whoever they were, they were good, until I became aware it wasn't real. Whatever I was seeing, feeling I should say, wasn't quite real. I had to shove down the feeling because there wasn't anything I could do about it in such a public area with so many civilians around me.

When the transport landed at beacon, the feeling stopped, and I walked calmly onto academy grounds with my hood up, trying to garner as little attention as possible just in case. Ozpin was waiting by the large doors to Beacon and I shot off a quick message on my scroll.

 _Walk inside, followed here._

Ozpin pulled out his scroll like he was checking the time and read my message before sighing and heading back in. Honestly, the man was a good actor.

Once we were inside, he went to his office and I followed him.

"Terra is safe for now but I'd like to keep her close. It'll be hard for them to travel once their baby is born but Qrow and Winter are going to be escorting them here before the Vytal festival begins." I explained the slightly altered plan. Ozpin nodded before he pulled out a file.

"We managed to find one of Terra's attackers based on Qrow's description. We've been looking for him ever since the attack but could never find him. A security camera caught a man matching the description in haven for a brief second. His name…is Mercury Black." Ozpin said as he handed me the file.

"Why does his name sound familiar?" I asked as I studied his face and other attributes; Unknown semblance, Grey eyes and greyish hair, height is 5'10'' with a pale complexion, just the fact it took him this long to be found suggests training in espionage, father is deceased with no information about mother.

What caught my eye was who his father was.

Marcus Black, an assassin I was very familiar with.

He had been sent by somebody to kill me at one point and was the reason why 'Summer Rose' died. I had been discovered a year before I was set to 'die' and ambushed. I beat him obviously, but he managed to escape. I had Tai say that Summer had died of her wounds 'right as she made it back to his house.' It was what necessitated the need for me to hide in a cabin in the woods, Tai and Yang being my only two human contacts in the world for a while until Ruby Rose came into town trying to 'find out what happened to her mother.'

"So what happened to Marcus?" I asked, Ozpin allowing me the time to remember who Marcus was, though likely not for the reasons he thought.

"As far as anyone is aware, he's dead. And the likely suspect is Mercury." He said as he pointed to the picture once more. I nodded as Ozpin began to shift gears.

"So were you able to catch a glimpse of who was following you?" He asked

"No. It had to have been some kind of semblance, powerful, but easy to work around if you know how. Thankfully I've run into one similar to it. It was some kind of hallucination semblance, rare because it effected my hearing AND sight." I emphasized.

"My, that is indeed rare." Ozpin muttered. "Most people only have the hearing or the sight, but very rarely both."

"Yes Ozpin, I'm aware. I've been studying semblances and aura since five girls and a panther boy came together to teach the people." I said, amusement in voice. "Sometimes I think you only see me for my looks." I sighed dramatically. Ozpin chuckled and took a sip of his coffee…no wait…it was cocoa today.

"You're right. Sometimes I see you as an eighteen-year-old student. My apologies." He humbly admitted.

"It's fine. Honestly, being here I sometimes forget that I'm almost a thousand years old. Being here I feel like I'm back to being under five hundred again." I joked.

"I know the feeling." Ozpin winced in solidarity.

"I need to talk to you about Jaune." I changed subjects after a minute of comfortable silence.

"I know what you want to ask. Why did I let him in?" He said knowingly.

"I can't figure it out for the life of me. He had no aura at the start, no semblance, no combat knowledge, pretty average with education. So why?"

"As a teacher I've seen many with every skill in the world but very little room for growth. Their potential is limited. But students like Jaune have massive potential, he's a blank slate to work with. He doesn't need any correcting in his habits because he has none to correct. That, and his family morals are appealing." Ozpin explained. Now I understood. Jaune was a mold ready to be filled, cast, and hardened into a warrior.

"I apologize for how I acted when I burst into your office after finding out about Jaune. It was…shameful." I admitted. I heard Ozpin move out from behind his desk and put a hand on my shoulder.

"Ruby, I understand. You've lived a life doing the best you could all on your own but constantly questioning your purpose. You're not used to working with people after so long of being alone. I know because I did the same thing, especially after my fight with Salem and I became Ozpin. You remind me of her in some ways." He said softly as I looked up in surprise. "You're immortal in the same way she is, driven like she is, but the difference is that you have not let your life experiences change you for the worse. You didn't become jaded and hateful, driven to seek vengeance. You've seen the worst in humanity and saw that they could do better, you gave some of your magic to those who deserved it and they passed it down to their children, like Maria. You started wars for the right reasons and ended them the best way possible. You, Scarlet rose, are a good person." He finished.

I was surprised and teared up a little at the end of his speech, not expecting to hear that name. It felt weird, hearing someone call me that again but strangely I loved it. He let me sit in his office to recollect myself before he looked at the time.

"It's incredibly late Ruby, I think it's time you head to your dorm room and get some rest. It's been a rather long few days and I heard from a certain reaper that you hadn't slept on the train and likely didn't on the way home. Go. Get a good night's rest. Your homework that you missed has been waived but you will need to make up Glynda's weekly examination. Her decision, not mine." Ozpin visibly shuttered at whatever thought of Goodwitch had said to him and I chuckled. Honestly the woman was scary. My hand on the frame of the door, I stopped and kept my back to Ozpin, only turning my head to look at him out of my left eye.

"Thank you. For the speech." I said quietly as I pushed the button to go down.

I was in the dorm hallway when I saw Jaune, still dressed in his armor with his sword and shield.

"Hey Jaune!" I greeted. He startled and looked at me in surprise. "Did you lock yourself out of your dorm room again?" Jaune looked away and I knew something was wrong. "Is everything okay?"

"I-I uh-I messed up." His face became dejected as he admitted to me what was wrong. "I did something Stupid and now Cardin has me on a leash and Pyrhha hasn't said a word to me in the last few days." He hit his head against the door. "I'm starting to think coming here was a bad idea." He lamented as he slid down the door and hit the floor with a thump. "I'm a failure." He finally said. I thought for a few seconds.

"Nope."

"No?"

"Nope. You're a leader now Jaune. And that comes with a certain responsibility and many heavy duties. None of which allow you to just fail or give up." I said, drawing on my own experiences.

"But what if I'm a failure at being a leader?" He continued to mope.

"Nope." He chuckled at the continued use of the word.

"You're not an easy person to talk to about this stuff, you know that?"

"Nope. You might've been a failure as a kid, and you might've been a failure the first day, but the moment Ozpin declared you leader it wasn't just about you anymore. The same with me. Failure isn't an option because out in the real world, failure can mean death. Not just for ourselves but for our teammates and those we're supposed to protect. Everyone else comes first now, yourself second. Your team deserves a great leader Jaune, and I know that can be you if you work for it." I said as I opened the door to the team dorm. Jaune looked dejected for a second before I saw something akin to what I had seen in Danielle. "Get some rest Jaune, tomorrow is important."

Walking into the dorm room, I looked at the clock and saw that it was near midnight. It sounded like everyone was asleep until I listened harder.

Blake was awake but pretending to be asleep.

I didn't want to really deal with that right now, because I knew she had question's, so I just dropped my bag and crescent rose by the door. I changed into some pajamas and hauled myself up to the bed. Getting comfortable I wrapped myself up in a blanket.

It wasn't a great night's rest, but it was the best I had gotten in recent decades.

My weekly combat examination wouldn't be until later the next day, after the Forever fall trip that we were on now.

"Now students, I know that the Forever Fall Forest is beautiful, but don't let it distract you. You've been tasked by professor peach to collect samples from the trees deep inside the forest. You'll collect one whole jar's worth of sap. However, this forest is full of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates and meet back here at four o'clock." Glynda instructed. I looked at yang in excitement but frowned when I saw Cardin making Jaune go with him instead of his teammates.

Pyhhra gave him a disappointed glance as the rest of JNPR went into the forest with their leader.

Gathering the sap was no problem, well, it would've been that much easier if Nora would stop eating it by the jarful. I don't know how she did it, honestly it was the sweetest thing I'd ever tasted in my life, and that was just from the tip of my finger. I was just about finished with our teams jars when _RDL ran by screaming about an Ursa and Cardin being done for.

"Yang, Blake, go get Goodwitch!" I gave out orders. I would've had them come with me, but Pyhhra had decided she'd become some kind of…something...with Jaune and wanted to help him.

"Nora, Ren. Go with them, there could be more!" Pyhhra told them. The pink and green duo nodded and ran to catch up. Weiss, Pyhhra, and I all ran towards the sound of grimm and combat.

When we arrived, Cardin was on the ground, a massive Ursa about to devour him. For the briefest second I thought about letting it get him before I shook my head in shame. Cardin was an ass, but he didn't deserve to die. The lumbering beast was going to finish the job when Jaune's shield stopped the massive paw. Jaune appeared to be struggling though, and Weiss readied her rapier, intent on helping.

"No."

"Wait."

Pyhhra and I said at the same time. I gave her a glance and a nod. We both had the same idea. But while she watched with worry and concern, intent on helping should the need arise, I watched impassively with the muscles in my legs ready to move at a moments notice. Weiss gave us a confused look just as Jaune jumped over the paw and was swiped out of the air, a good move for dodging slower opponents, but not one with two massive paws intent on killing you. He rolled to his feet and charged again, getting batted away by the sheer strength of a fully grown Ursa. He rolled again to his feet and checked his shield for something, probably aura level.

He must have been comfortable enough with it as he charged the Ursa again, his shield nowhere close to being ready to defend.

Until it was. A small glow surrounded the folding shield and it was brought up to where the paw going to crush Jaune, defending him. Planting his foot in the ground, he lunged up with his sword and chopped the head off the great beast, killing it.

Weiss was almost at a loss for words.

"How did you-"

"Well, Ruby has her speed, you have your glyphs, and my semblance…is polarity."

How interesting. What was also interesting was Pyhhra walking away.

"Wait, where are you going?!" Weiss called out.

"Just let it go Weiss. This'll be our secret." I said when Pyhhra looked at me surprised but nodded and walked away. Jaune stood there for a second, reminding me that he was every bit Danielle arc just by his stance alone. Confident, but humble.

I followed Pyhhra and Jaune to the roof that very night, listening to them as they had their talk. Jaune admitting how foolish he had been. Pyhhra forgave him like I knew she would but I was also praying for her to honestly just woman the hell up and ask him out already. It was clear to literally everyone except Jaune!

I was surprised when Jaune swallowed his pride and asked Pyhhra to help him become a better fighter. Honestly it was about damn time. If he hadn't have asked I would've locked him in training room with myself for a few hours and just teach him.

It was a pretty fitful night for me. Seeing Jaune in combat reminded me heavily of Danielle. I wasn't even sleep before I felt Yang Climb up in bed and wrap her arms around me.

"I gotcha Rubes. Just sleep. I'll be right here." She whispered soothingly. I nodded and closed my eyes, burrowing into Yang's larger frame and felt as she heated herself up slowly before settling at a warm temperature, just like I'd taught her years ago.

I was asleep in another minute, My dreams switching between being pleasant and nightmares.

Waking up early on a Friday when we didn't have to was weird, but Weiss insisted that we go to downtown Vale while they set up for the Vytal festival, which I had forgotten started in a few days. Everything was going great until we saw a destroyed dust shop, detectives and police tape all over the front. And then it became worse when the detectives mentioned the white fang, and Weiss just had to comment.

"The white fang. What an awful bunch of degenerates."

Ah shit.


	10. Chapter 10: To Be Human

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Ten: To Be Human**

"The White Fang. What an awful bunch of degenerates." Weiss exclaimed as she surveyed the damage to the dust shop.

Ah shit.

Thankfully, before Blake could get very defensive, Yang came to the 'fangs defense.

"That's not necessarily true." She said. unfortunately the phrase came with poor time, as two crewmen on a boat were shouting at what appeared to be a monkey faunus, telling him to stop.

"Hey! Stop that faunus!" One of them shouted as we ran towards the waterfront to see him running away from them. The faunus shouted back, but it was a little difficult to make out over the ocean. Say what you will about immortality and all, but my body was still basically human.

The faunus jumped off the boat and ran, climbing up on the exit archway and hanging upside down by his tail. He must have decided to go with the stereotype and started eating a banana, or not because honestly, bananas are delicious.

He shouted something about being a great stowaway, and honestly he must have been since he wasn't caught. I noticed the detectives from the dust shop approaching, one holding a rock in his hand. I pulled out crescent rose.

Just as he threw it, right between his hand and the faunus' head, the rock disintegrated into dust, the detectives whirled around and looked at the smoking barrel of crescent rose. They must have decided it wasn't worth it and turned back to the boy, telling him to get down.

I could feel everyone's eyes on me, but most of all was Blake.

"Damn. A second too slow." I mumbled to myself as I walked away, my cloak billowing behind me. I turned my head slightly as I felt someone running up past me, it was the faunus.

In closer detail I could see he was blonde, blueish grey eyes, tanned a little bit, tall, and a long dexterous tail. He had vambraces, his weapon strapped to his back, a belt with a chain, an unbuttoned shirt with rolled up sleeves, blue shorts, and wrappings on his legs, and some thin shoes.

When he was running past, Blake had her mouth open and everything as he winked at her.

I rolled my eyes.

"Teenagers." I scoffed quietly to myself. Not quite enough apparently since Yang had seen the whole thing and was trying to contain her laughter.

Yang got a smile on her face once she reigned herself in. "Well Weiss, you wanted to see the competition, and there it goes." She said with smirk.

"Quick! We have to observe him!"

Gods, this isn't science class.

We ran, which was weird since I could run past the speed of sound, after the faunus. Running for a block or two, I wasn't really paying attention, Weiss ran around the corner and I heard her smack into something or someone. Rounding the corner, I was right. She had run into a girl.

"No! he got away!" Weiss exclaimed. Really…she was laying on top of a girl and didn't even seem bothered to care about that. Yang was the first to point it out.

"uhh Weiss?" She pointed under her, and Weiss finally noticed when Penny gave a somewhat creepy smile. Weiss got up with a jolt.

"Salutations." She said.

"Hello." I said awkwardly.

"Are you…okay?" Yang was obviously confused with the girl, as she just continued laying on the ground. No inclination of wanting to get up.

"I'm wonderful! Thank you for asking!" The mysterious girl exclaimed.

"Do you…wanna get up?" Yang asked with an awkward tone. The girl seemed to think about it for a few seconds. How odd.

"Yes!" She finally answered. And then she did a flip to get herself off the ground, telling me that there was more to her than met the eye. We all took a step back.

"My name is Penny. It's a pleasure to meet you!" She said politely. I was pretty neutral with my introduction.

"Hi Penny, I'm Ruby." Weiss seemed annoyed.

"I'm Weiss." Blake obviously didn't care.

"Blake." And then there was Yang.

"Are you sure you didn't hit your head?" Blake elbowed her. "Oh! I'm Yang."

'Honestly, I thought I taught that girl better manners.' I thought with a fond smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" Penny said again. Weiss voiced my thoughts.

"You've already said that." Again the girl seemed to think for a second.

"So I did!" She said with an awkward smile.

"Sorry for running into you." Weiss apologized. We walked away and I left her with a few parting words.

"Take care, Friend!" I don't know why I said it, it wasn't something I often said.

I heard a noise behind me, but wrote it off as Penny leaving.

"She was…weird." Yang gave voice to all of our thoughts. I've met thousands of people in my life, but Penny reminded me of a child, one who was just discovering the land outside the village wall.

"now, where did that faunus riff raff get off to?" Weiss said with agitation. I could feel Blake tensing up and getting ready to give Weiss a verbal lashing, but the weirdest thing happened. Right in front of us was Penny.

"What did you call me?" She asked. Weiss looked back and forth between where she was and where she had been. Yang thought Penny might be angry about the weird comment.

"Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't think you heard me." Yang stammered out. But Penny didn't even look at her. She was looking at me.

Pushing through Weiss and Yang she said, "No. Not you. You." She walked toward me.

"Me? I-I don't know I-Uhh-" She cut me off

"You called me friend! Am I really your friend?" She asked. It was a little desperate, a little sad, but still there was hope in her voice. Oh Gods I was really not the person to have friends with. Weiss, Blake, and Yang were telling me no with their eyes and hands. But this girl sounded like she needed a friend.

"Yeah sure! Why not!" I said. The girls all looked at me with wide eyes before collapsing.

Overdramatic weirdos.

Penny threw her arms up and laughed, telling me how we could do all kinds of girls things together like hair, nails, and talk about cute boys.

"Look, I'm not really the type of girl that likes that kind of stuff. I like weapons and fighting mostly…and food but that's beside the point." I said. She nodded, not once losing that charismatic smile. Weiss got up and dusted herself off. Yang got up and pulled Blake up with her.

"So, what are you doing in Vale?" Yang asked. Penny's answer was not expected.

"I'm competing in the tournament." She said like it was obvious.

It wasn't.

"Wait, you're fighting in the tournament?" Weiss' tone was incredulous. Penny just gave her a look and a salute.

"I am combat ready!" She exclaimed. What an interesting choice of words. Weiss was a bit…harsher…in her attitude towards Penny's readiness.

"Forgive me but, you hardly look the part." If Penny was insulted she surely didn't show it. Blake jumped in.

"Says the girl wearing a dress." Now Weiss was definitely affronted.

"Excuse you! It's a combat skirt." I ran up, showing my support for Weiss and got a high five. It was one of the few good interactions we had so far. Too bad things went from 'hey this is pretty good' to 'why do the Gods hate me' pretty quick.

"Wait a minute, if you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that monkey tailed…rapscallion!" Weiss questioned Penny as she shook her shoulders.

"The who now?" Penny was obviously confused.

"Weiss that's enough." I said. Clearly she either didn't care or didn't hear me.

"The filthy faunus from the boat!" She exclaimed as she pulled a poor drawing from Gods know where. I was about to be more forceful when it got even worse.

"Why do you keep saying that? Why do you keep calling him a rapscallion, a degenerate! He's a person!" Blake was tense as she tried to lecture Weiss

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Weiss said in mock innocence. "Would you like me to stop calling this trashcan a trashcan, or this lamppost a lamppost!" She exclaimed.

"Stop it!" Blake's voice got higher, more aggressive. Now it was time to put my foot down.

"That's enough! Both of you!" I shouted as I zipped between them. "This was a nice day, and since you both cant seem to enjoy it we're going back to beacon where you can talk this out. Peacefully!" I grit out through my teeth. I tried to reign in my temper with them, not wanting them to see such an ugly side. Yang looked ready to jump in and calm me down and Weiss and Blake seemed cowed into submission, temporarily if their glaring at each other a few seconds later was anything to go by.

Grabbing them by their collars I led them towards the airships where I pushed each of them into separate seats, Weiss being first with an indignant huff.

"You wanna argue and act like children, you'll be treated as such." I said lowly, a dangerous glint in my eyes when she got ready to say something. Putting Blake in a seat on the opposite side of the aisle, I went and sat where I could keep an eye on them, Yang sliding in next to me.

"You okay?" She asked quietly.

"No. I didn't start a war and end it just for this to keep happening." I whispered, watching Blake's bow to see if it would twitch. It didn't. "I should've done more." I whispered again, the guilt I felt coming out in spades.

"You couldn't have known this would happen. Especially after so many years." Yang whispered again, trying to be the supportive sister she had proclaimed herself to be.

"I should've. That kind of anger and bigotry doesn't just stop. It's a poison that runs deep and takes hold, sinking it's claws in wherever it can. It's a poison of the mind." There were so many societal poisons, but this one was the most dangerous since it could spread easier and form offshoots, perpetuating the cycle.

"You're not God Runes. You've seen the rise and fall of empires and kingdoms, run faster than sound, and fight like hell, but not once could you ever predict the future. Nobody can." Yang said comfortingly as she wrapped me in a side hug. She was right, I knew that, but it still sucked to think that I could've done more, but didn't.

"Besides, you cant change peoples minds instantly. You said it yourself, it's a poison. People have to learn in order to destroy it. And they are learning, just look at the laws and rights the faunus have for them." She said with hope, trying to pick me up.

"You're right." I said after a few seconds. "When did you become the wise one." I asked fondly. Yang looked at me softly.

"Ever since I got a great big sister to teach me how to be better." The fondness in her voice brought a tear to my eye as I hugged.

"What do I do about them?" I looked at Blake and Weiss, a sigh falling from my lips.

"I don't have the answer to that. Maybe just let this run it's course, or maybe you use that one technique on Weiss…" Yang trailed off. I knew what she was talking about.

"You know why I can't do that. I trust them, but they're not ready for that." I sighed again. Yang looked at me.

"Yeah, I know. Eventually you're going to have to trust them though. Blake especially."

"I do trust Blake, but she, more than anyone, isn't ready for the things I have to say."

"You're afraid." Yang said simply. I looked at her in confusion, I wasn't really afraid of much. "Afraid what Blake will think when she realizes just how much you can do, or that Blake might hate you for it all, or that she'll be angry with how involved you've been in her life without her even knowing." Yang was feeling particularly insightful today apparently. All I could do was nod. Yang was right.

Yang just held me tighter as we landed at Beacon. Yang took Blake off the airship first and I waited a few more seconds before pulling Weiss from her seat. She wouldn't even acknowledge me as she walked out. The sun had set by the time we got all the way back to our dorm, and it wasn't even five minutes later when the argument picked up again. Weiss saying she didn't understand and Blake saying that was the point.

It all came to a head when Weiss admitted only a small part of her childhood, something she kept under heavy lock and key. Weiss launched accusation after accusation, Calling the 'fang a bunch of liars, thieves, and murderers.

"WELL MAYBE WE WERE TIRED OF BEING PUSHED AROUND!" Blake shouted, her fists curled tightly. Weiss backed away in shock and fear while Blake realized what she had said.

The truth was out and there was no way it could be taken back.

"I-" She hesitated, and then she was gone.

"Blake! Wait!" I said as I ran to the door. I stopped when I realized that she wouldn't want to be talked to just yet, not in any way. She was afraid. And when Blake was afraid, she had a tendency to run if she was able to. Mostly it allowed her to sort herself out, so I let her go. I lost it when Weiss spoke.

"Well good riddance." Her tone full of bitterness and anger. I screamed at her as I pushed her onto the bed.

"You don't know anything. You're a child looking through a keyhole at the world around you. You've allowed your fathers hate to blind you for years. You have a chance to do better, be better. And you throw it in the trash! For what!" I raved at her in anger. She opened her mouth for some retort but I wasn't having it. "NO! I don't want to hear it! Go the fuck to sleep! We're looking for her in the morning." I ordered. Yang didn't say anything, just picked Weiss up and guided her to the bathroom. I changed and hopped into bed. Immediately I knew it wouldn't be good night.

 _Yang's POV_

I heard Ruby get into her bed as Weiss just stared at the door in shock.

"I've never seen her so angry." She said quietly. I nodded at her statement.

"Rubes rarely gets angry like that. But She's lived a rough life and it makes certain situations bring up painful memories. "We're gonna stay here for a little while, with Ruby in her state she's a bit volatile. Hopefully she'll go to sleep, though she's liable to have nightmare, but if she's awake she can cool off." I explained. Weiss nodded.

"I know that my father isn't a good man." Weiss said after a few minutes in silence. "I know the things he's done to the faunus. I came here to be better and I screwed that up, I know. I just let my fathers biases fall over me because it was easier to be angry than to try to understand." She admitted quietly. I nodded in understanding.

"I used to have a bad temper. Relied on my semblance a lot to finish fights. My semblance is anger based, no control but incredibly powerful. Ruby, ironically, taught me how to fight and win without it." I said with a smile, remembering the hours Ruby sparred with me.

"You say you're sisters but you don't look like each other. Why is that? If you don't mind me asking, that is." Weiss asked, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Ruby's sort of adopted." I said going with the story we came up with years ago. "We knew her mother who had been staying with us for a year while Ruby stayed with her dad in another town. Summer, her mom, went on a hunt since she was a huntress and came back all bloody and broken. She died from her wounds. Ruby came looking for her since she had been missing for a few months and wanted to find out what happened to her. Since her dad wasn't the greatest, and was never around, my dad kinda just…took her in." I said. Weiss looked at me wide eyed, since Ruby never spoke about her past around the team, or if she did, it was small details.

We stayed in the bathroom for another hour and a half, loosing track of time and just talking. It was pretty nice. I was about to tell a funny story that Ruby told me of when she first appeared on earth that could easily be told as Ruby when she first got her semblance when we heard a crash.

That wasn't good.

"Weiss stay here." Urgency was the only thing that could be heard, along with another crash. "No matter what happens, stay here." I got up and had my hand on the door. "Lock it behind me as I pushed the door open. I breathed in relief when I heard it lock once it was closed. Looking into the dark room I saw Ruby had already destroyed her bed and was on the way to destroying Weiss'.

"Where is she. Gotta find her so you tell me where she is." She spoke to a ghost.

She was trapped in a walking nightmare.

"Ruby?" I said hesitantly. Hopefully she wasn't to far in. When she looked at me with such hateful eyes I knew it was too late.

"Where is she! What did you do with her!?" She shouted as she charged at me. I braced myself for impact. "You tell me where Preto is or I'll tear you to pieces!" She screamed.

This was a bad dream for her to be stuck in, especially with Weiss so close.

I was slammed into the wall and hit multiple times at a quick speed with a flurry of punches. I felt my shoulder gripped and suddenly I was flying, landing on the pieces of a mattress and bed frame. Ruby screamed again as I got to my feet.

"Tell me where you've taken her right now!"

"Ruby it's me! Wake up!" I knew she wouldn't, not unless I could subdue her, but it was worth a try. I parried a few kicks and a fist until my legs were taken out from under me. I felt her straddle me as she rained down hit after hit on chest and face. I knew my aura wouldn't take much more but if I just let her beat me, Ruby would kill me in the state she was in.

Tapping into my anger, I felt the fire building and my strength growing as the damage she was dealing was being absorbed. I took a few more powerful hits before I made a fist and blasted her through the window, shattering it. I got and heard Ruby roaring into the night. If I didn't stop her, she'd destroy a lot more than just our dorm. Grabbing my scroll, I called my locker to the courtyard and watched it descend near the window. Jumping down when it landed, I quickly put on ember celica and got them ready. Ruby was still screaming, and she had lost control of her maiden powers, the orange flames shooting out of her eyes.

She through her head back and arms out, breathing fire and shooting it out of her fists.

"Bring her to me and I'll be merciful!" She shouted across the courtyard.

"Please Ruby! Snap out of it!" I said cocked a round into my gauntlets. A ball of fire came my way and I dodged it as it destroyed the locker behind me.

Running at her at full speed I jumped into the air to deliver a full power punch, but Ruby, even in her state, was still an elite combatant. She slid under and pushed up, kicking me in the stomach and sending me flying. Ruby jumped as I landed shakily on my feet, my aura fading. Suddenly Ruby was enveloped in a green a purple field of some sort, a thud each time she hit it. looking around I saw Ozpin and Goodwitch leveling their weapons at her.

Ruby kept punching it, screaming like a mad woman until Ozpin did…something. And Ruby was unconscious, the fire in her eyes fading as she slumped over and collapsed into the dirt.

"What took you so long?" I said with a smirk.

"The warning system you and Tai came up with was delayed for some reason." Ozpin said as he held up his scroll, Ruby's face on the screen along with several statistics of her vitals being shown.

"So the warning system sorta worked?" I asked. We had given the software for it to Ozpin and Glynda in case this happened. It hadn't happened in a while so we thought it was us just being more safe than sorry.

"Yes, though it appears to need tweaking." Ozpin said with a smile. "Right now though, I think you should take Ruby to bed. I think it be best if you find your missing teammate as fast as possible once she wakes up." He said. I nodded and picked her up, carrying her bridal style back towards the dorm. Thankfully nobody seemed to have seen anything besides us.

Laying her in my bed, I crawled around her cuddled up behind her as Weiss looked at her sadness and regret. I stroked her hair and raised my body temperature a bit and her body relaxed more.

"How often does THAT happen?" Weiss asked softly.

"a lot loess often then the nightmares. Used to happen when she was younger." I said, remembering the times it was me and dad trying to calm her down.

"Who was Preto? The person she was yelling about?" Weiss was prying a bit and I knew it but I hoped to help her understand when I answered.

"Preto was a girl she loved, a faunus, she never got around to telling her though. Preto was kidnapped by a few bitter kids after she won in a fight against them." A fight early in the war. "They snuck into the small town," Which was a war camp. "and took her, to where other than atlas Ruby never said, but they tortured her for days before she found them. It wasn't pretty is all Ruby will ever say if she'd asked and she in her anger, she snapped and massacred them all. She helped Preto get revenge a few months later." Which wasn't actually until the end of the war. "And killed the man who organized it all." I finished slowly.

"I-I had no idea." Weiss was openly crying.

"It's not a story Ruby would tell you, and I don't tell you to make you feel awful, I just want you to understand. Blake probably reminds Ruby of Preto in some way, and her being missing is dredging up terrible memories for her." I said quietly. Weiss nodded sadly.

"It's my fault, but I'm gonna fix this." Her determination was heartwarming.

"I know you will."


	11. Chapter 11: Secrets secrets

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Eleven: Secrets secrets**

 _Yang's POV_

The weekend had been the worst I had ever seen Ruby looking. She was paler than normal and her eyes sunken slightly. She wasn't eating right, and her sleeping was intermittent at best and completely non-existent at worst. It was so bad Ozpin had come to the dorm and kicked Weiss and I out while he tried talking to Ruby.

"I feel awful. This is all my fault." Weiss whispered out of the blue. I looked at her with tired eyes.

"It's not. It really isn't. Ruby has always struggled with her past though she doesn't talk about it. I've held her enough times at night to know that. Very rarely does she ever allow those memories to get in the way of present life. You didn't do anything, she's just allowed herself to disconnect and it's messing with her big time. Hopefully Ozpin can talk her out of it." I didn't want Weiss to blame herself.

"Ruby's very special to you, isn't she?" Weiss asked softly. I looked at her and nodded.

"She's my big sister in every way. She has this confidence to her that most people mistake for arrogance, but in actuality, she has the experience. Her mother was an amazing huntress, taught her everything she knew. Ruby was hunting from the time she could walk and hold a weapon." Which was true, from a certain point of view. "When dad took her in, she became part of the family. My badass sister. Slayer of monsters and baker of cookies." I chuckled at the phrase, remembering when she first said it to me. "She came with a lot of baggage. Watching friends die out in the wilds where she and her mom lived, villagers torn apart by grimm. She remembers all of it." A darkness had taken over my tone and Weiss looked hesitant before she finally asked what was on her mind.

"I get that Ruby loved a faunus, but that why does it seem like she's just…forgiven Blake?" I breathed deeply, thinking over the possible answer.

"Because Ruby already knew. She made it a point to know once we became a team. She knew that Blake had been a part of the 'fang. Ruby doesn't support the 'fang, thinks it's the wrong message, but she does understand. Her and Preto were tight before she was kidnapped and died years later because of the sick things those guys did to her." Ruby had told me the state Preto was in when she found her. It was pretty bad.

The General at the time, Blackstone, had tortured her for information on how the uprising had started without the militaries notice. That had been Ruby's doing. An accident with dust here, a few mine overseers dying on 'accident' there, small groups of slaves escaping inexplicably. It had all led to a gorilla campaign in the early days when the uprising was just a thought, but it diverted the militaries of remnants attention long enough for Ruby to organize the faunus into a legitimate fighting force.

Of course, Weiss couldn't know about this, so I had to continue bending the story a bit.

"The white fang originally started as a symbol of peace, did you know that?" Wiess shook her head. "But people still saw them as lesser. So, the White Fang became an organization of protest for equality. All the Faunus want is to stop being treated like animals." I finished. Weiss and I sat in silence, Though I could tell Weiss was getting stuck in her own head. I was about to pull her out when the door opened.

"How is she?" I asked quickly. Ruby stepped out from behind him, a tired and haunted look in her eyes. She likely wouldn't talk about it though.

"I'm fine. We're gonna find Blake." She said quietly as she stormed down the hall. I knew her promise to indigo was important to her, so I would help any way I could. Weiss hesitated though.

"Weiss. Come on. I know you're not exactly friends with Blake but she's our teammate. We have to find her." I said with a bit of force. Weiss swallowed hard before speaking.

"It's not that I don't want to find her, I'm…just afraid of what she'll say when we do…" She admitted quietly. "I know what my father has done to the faunus, what Atlas especially has done. I don't want to be like him, but I just fell back into a more…harmful thought process and I hurt Blake. Yes, I didn't have the best childhood, but it shouldn't have been an excuse for my behavior. And now Ruby and Blake hate me and I just…" I decided to stop her right there.

"I can't speak for Blake, but I know Ruby doesn't hate you. She's frustrated, and tired, and she's our leader. With Blake splitting and being reminded of her best friend it's put her under a lot of stress. She had a team before beacon. You probably wouldn't know that since she never talks about that stuff but it's true." Weiss looked at me in surprise.

"What happened to them?" Weiss was hesitant.

"They all died in one way or another. This whole thing, being at Beacon and leading another team? It's hard for her. They had all been together since they were practically kids, learning from Ruby's mom and on their own out in the wilds. This isn't HER team if you know what I mean." I stressed.

"I think so. She's been used to leading her old team, now that we're here and practically falling apart, it's hard on her. She wants us to be that team that she knows how to lead but we're not…" Weiss said softly.

"Exactly. Ruby just needs more time for all this. She'll warm up again because it's who she is. Like I said, she might seem arrogant, but it's experience and loss that drive her decisions."

 _Ruby POV_

I had been listening to Weiss and Yang talk around the corner for the entire time, and I was awed at Yang's perception. While it wasn't the whole thing behind every decision I made, it was most of it. I heard them begin walking and ran out to the courtyard where the statue was. I waited for a few minutes until they got there and wordlessly walked towards the airship docks. Yang followed easily but Weiss was a bit hesitant, which was understandable.

Arriving in Vale Yang and I called out for Blake, with Weiss eventually joining in. I smiled behind my hood when she did it of her own free will.

Seems Yang's words had an impact.

We were almost three hours in when Penny showed up out of literally nowhere.

"Hey Penny." I greeted. Apparently she had become fairly observant since the last time we saw her.

"What's the matter friend Ruby?" It was surprisingly Weiss who answered.

"I had a disagreement with our friend Blake and she ran away. We've been looking for her since this morning."

"Oh, Blake! The faunus girl?" I narrowed my eyes at that. There was no way she should have known that, not unless she could somehow see through the bow or knew beforehand.

"How did you know that?" I asked slowly.

"Um I-Uhh." She stammered. "I just knew it." And then she hiccupped.

"Are you okay Penny?" I asked.

"Yes. I am wonderful thank you for asking!" No hiccup. Interesting, but not worth pursuing right now

"Well it was nice seeing you again, but we should be on our way." Weiss said politely. I had an idea though.

"No. You and Yang should head somewhere else. If Penny knew Blake was a faunus then she might help tracking her down." I explained. Yang nodded, and she and Weiss went off on their own.

 _Elsewhere in Vale: Blake POV_

"So, what's the plan now?" Sun asked. I had met with him earlier at a restaurant where we got to talking about the 'fang and things of that nature.

"I'm still not sure that the White Fang are behind these robberies. They've never needed this much dust before." It was all very confusing, and also quite troubling.

"What if they did? I mean, the only way to prove it wasn't them would be to catch whoever IS doing it in the act. And since I heard some of the crew on the ship talking about a huge offloading of dust, it would be the perfect opportunity to do just that!" Sun shouted in excitement.

"Shh keep it down, the last thing we need is people overhearing anything and calling the police on two faunus who were talking about dust shipments." I scolded him. His tail drooped, and I felt bad for a second before I thought over what he said.

"How huge a shipment did you hear it was?" I whispered. He grinned.

"Huge."

I was about to respond when my scroll went off. It was Ruby again for what had to be the fifteenth time today. I felt bad about ignoring it, especially since her earlier ones where she left messages she sounded so broken…scared.

"Are you gonna answer it, at least let them know you're okay?" Sun asked behind me.

"No. Ruby might not be mad, but the rest probably are. Besides, we have to prove it wasn't the white fang." I was determined to see this through, no matter what.

"Ruby. She's your team leader right?" Sun asked suddenly.

"Yeah."

"She was the one that shot that rock out of the air before it could hit me in the face." It was a statement rather than a question.

"Yeah? Where is this going?"

"What I'm getting at, is that you should at least tell her you're okay. Someone like that, who would shoot off a high impact rifle round and risk getting arrested for illegal use of a weapon outside of combat as a huntress in training, I think deserves to know that her teammate is okay. Besides, we could use her for whatever you're planning in that head of yours." He said seriously. Sun began walking away with a shrug of his shoulders, heading to the docks. I stared at the scroll in my hands, Ruby's contact information already pulled up.

I hit the call button.

Almost immediately Ruby answered.

" _Blake? Blake are you there?! Are you okay?!"_ I felt bad that Ruby seemed really panicky.

"I'm okay Ruby. I'm sorry I ran off like that." I did feel bad honestly.

" _Where are you now? Are you safe at least?"_

"Yeah. Can't say for later. Listen, I'm with Sun and he came up with a crazy idea and I'm gonna go through with it but I could use your help." I expected her to chew me out for even thinking of going along with whatever idea she must have thought I had.

" _You're going after proof that the 'fang didn't commit these robberies, aren't you?"_ She didn't bullshit around issue it hand it seemed.

"Yes."

" _I know exactly where you'll be heading then. I'll meet you on the roof overlooking the docks an hour after dark."_ Then the line went dead and was forced to stare at my phone in surprise. How did she know I would be at the docks?

It was several hours later, and I was laying down on the roof when I felt a presence that wasn't sun on the roof with us. Putting my hand on the hilt of Gamble shroud slowly, I quickly whipped out the blade when the presence was close enough, stopping a few inches from Ruby's neck when I realized it was her.

She hadn't even flinched.

She wasn't wearing her signature red cloak, rather a black one.

"Well we ARE being sneaky, aren't we?" She said with a small laugh. I rolled my eyes. Catching sight of Penny who must have followed her here for some reason, though she stood by awkwardly.

"You should be taking this seriously." I said quietly. Ruby's eyes hardened for a brief second.

"Look Blake, this isn't my first rodeo. The white fang are definitely not the scariest things on remnant, believe me." She said darkly. It made me want to believe her.

"What's the plan." Ruby whispered. She was letting me take control?

"This is your idea, so you make the plan. I can do whatever you need me to do." Ruby said. I nodded.

"We just need to find out if it really is the white fang, and possibly put a stop to it if we can."

"Okay not much of a plan but it is a REALLY good mission statement." Ruby said with a shrug. She looked at me hesitantly. "I called Weiss and Yang just before I got here. They're part of the team so they should be here with us." I could only nod because what was done was done. I wasn't happy about seeing Weiss, but it was going to happen sooner or later.

"One more thing." She said to get my attention again. "If it comes down to it…the choice between saving your life or Yang and Weiss' from some white fang grunt who might get luck…I wont hesitate to do what needs to be done." The tone in her voice was darkness emanating form the body of an eighteen-year-old. Something I hadn't seen since Adam, and I had to admit it scared me. She looked at me sharply.

"Don't ever compare me to that monster. He takes pleasure in the death of innocent people and is quick to label it as collateral. I am not him" I must have said that she reminded me of Adam out loud.

"Yeah you did." Damnit. I was broken out of my thoughts when a bullhead flew over us and Ruby pulled her hood up. A few seconds later the bullhead landed, and a member of the white fang came out. And another. And another. Until there were dozens of them. I hung my head in sadness.

"You really didn't think they did it, did you?" Sun asked.

"Deep down I did, I just didn't want to admit it." I said with shame. My attention was brought back to the situation when a human stepped out.

"Roman." I heard Ruby growl.

"This isn't right. The 'fang would never work with a human, especially not one like that." I said as I heard him giving some racist remarks. I stood from my perch and unsheathed my sword form my back. I was about to jump down when I felt a hand on my wrist. Turning around I saw Ruby, Crescent rose in its compact form in her other hand.

"Don't do anything rash. I'll cover you up here. Sun, head down with her but stay out of sight." She instructed. I nodded and jumped down.

 _Ruby POV_

Watching from my perch, I deployed Crescent rose in slammed the blade down into the roof, silently apologizing for the damage. Peering through the scope, I could see Blake take Roman by the neck with her sword but was unable to hear anything they were saying. Why didn't I take that lipreading lesson all those years ago? I heard a noise off in the distance and looked up to see several bullheads coming in. this operation was much bigger than I had realized.

I heard an explosion in Romans area and saw Blake laying on the ground. He must have used her distraction at the bullheads to use his weapon on her and take her by surprise. He fired at her again and I was just about to take the shot when Blake rounded the corner and a banana impacted Roman in the face right before Sun's feet did the same.

I heard noise behind me and whirled around with crescent rose, seeing Yang and Weiss running up to me. Quickly I directed them to the battle. Penny was still standing off to the side like I had told her too.

"Friend Ruby I can help!" She pleaded.

"No Penny! Stay back!" I shouted as I racked the bolt of my rifle. Roman must have heard us though since he took a shot right at Penny. I managed to speed up from a dead stop and push her out of the way, but the rocket caught the edge of the roof and exploded, sending me flying.

I sat up to see Penny walking to the edge.

"Penny! It's not safe!" I shouted over the sound of battle.

"Don't worry friend Ruby. I am combat ready." She said. As she spoke, a dozen swords came out of her backpack and floated around her, in the moonlight I could faintly make out microwire coming from each sword and leading into her backpack.

What the hell?

Something definitely didn't add up about this girl.

I decided to Jump down since I coulsnt be very effective with everyone engaged with a combatant or two. I couldn't risk hitting anyone.

Three more bullheads were coming though so I decided to focus fire on them for the time being. They began shooting, a line of bullets heading straight for Penny.

"Penny! Get out of the way!" I shouted at her. She looked up in surprise before two more swords shot out of the backpack, this time I could make out the cables far easier.

There was much more to her than met the eye, because there was no way that much cable with her swords resided in her backpack. Launching herself backwards, she planted her feet and the swords began spinning around and a ball of light formed in the center. Before I could even think about whatever the hell it was, an energy beam shot out from the center, hitting all three bullheads, one laser slicing through the fuel compartment causing an explosion that sent shrapnel everywhere.

A large piece was headed for Weiss, who hadn't even noticed.

Turning into a petal burst, I rushed towards her when I realized I wasn't going to make it to her in time.

I could jump in front of her though. It would reveal my biggest secret, but if it saved Weiss it was worth it.

Pushing hard, I rematerialized in front of the metal shard and took it full force in the stomach and lower chest. Everyone around me seemed to stop as I skidded on the soles of my boots before collapsing in pain on my knees. The first to react was Weiss.

"RUBY!" Shouted as she rushed over to me. Roman and the 'fang members used the distraction to escape. Yang rushed over to me with Blake not far behind. Yang slid on her knees as she got close to me.

"Ruby! Ruby answer me!" She shouted desperately.

"Damnit. This happened a lot sooner than I anticipated." I said as I coughed up a piece of a lung. "Just help me up so we can go somewhere private." I coughed again. Yang nodded, knowing what I was talking about. Weiss and Blake protested.

"What do you think you're doing! She needs serious help!" Weiss shouted at the same time as Blake.

"Yang she's seriously hurt and probably delirious! Just let the proffesionals handle it when they arrive!" There were tears in her eyes as well as Weiss'.

"Just trust me okay. Yang, I cant feel my legs right now so you'll just have to carry me. Right over there, if you can manage it." I said weakly. Yang nodded as she picked me up and ran me to an office right on the loading bay. Blake and Weiss followed, protesting the whole way. Yang set me down eventually on my side sine the shrapnel had pierced my back it felt like.

"Yang. There's nothing you can do except pull it out. Don't hesitate, just do it." I grit out, closing my eyes and preparing for the worst pain I would feel in a long time. Weiss and Blake tried to stop her, but Yang just muscled through them, putting a hand on the piece and yanking it out.

It was the loudest I had screamed in a long time. The blood flowing all around me before it stopped. Feeling where the shrapnel had been I could only feel a small scar. I looked up into the confused, scared, and watery eyes of Blake and Weiss as they tried to comprehend what they were seeing.

"Uhh…surprise." I said with a sheepish smile.

Weiss fainted, and Blake threw up.


	12. Chapter 12: An Explanation

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Please see the end for a quick A/N**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Twelve: An Explanation**

After the police questioned us, I sent Ozpin a message letting him know what happened and carried Weiss to the airship while Yang led Blake. It hurt to see the look in her eyes. She didn't know what I was because nobody should've been able to heal from that. I don't even think Jaune could've healed from that.

Ozpin was waiting by the massive doors when we finally arrived. By the look on his face, he wasn't happy but knew it would happen at some point. I gave him a nod, trying to convey that I wanted to handle this alone. He nodded back to me and headed back towards his office, or I assume he headed there anyway.

Trudging up to the dorm, Yang opened the door and led Blake inside. She looked at me briefly, I saw a little bit of fear still lingering, but there was also curiosity. I was still doubting what, exactly, I should tell them though.

Do I tell Weiss and Blake the whole truth, changing their entire view of the world? Or do I specifically tell them about myself?

Laying Weiss down on her bed, I jumped up into mine. I could feel Blakes eyes burning into my back as I laid down. Turning over to her just as Yang jumped up in her own bed, I spoke.

"I know you have questions Blake, I'd be surprised if you didn't. But I'd like to sleep first, and I feel like you do too. I'll explain tomorrow. I promise." I was glad when she nodded her head, Turning over, and attempting to sleep.

"Rubes?" Yang asked into the dark. I cracked open my right eye and looked at her. or where I thought she was. In truth, she was down on the floor walking towards my bed.

"What's up?" I asked as I sat up.

"You gonna be okay tonight." She looked at me with her lilac eyes opened wide, staring at me as if she could learn the answer by staring into my soul. She knows me better than I know myself sometimes.

"I definitely wouldn't be opposed to a snuggle party, but I still don't trust this bed." I said quietly. Yang nodded her head, reaching her hand up and ruffling my hair a little bit. She ducked down and I could hear her slowly shifting Weiss into her arms before she walked across the dorm and fenagled the heiress onto her own bed. She padded over to my bed and climbed up before wrapping an arm around me. I snuggled into her and she pulled me in.

"I gotcha." She whispered.

"You're the best sister I could've ever asked for." I murmured. I could feel her laughing, but I didn't hear it as I was drifting off.

When I woke up, the sun was streaming into the room through the open window shades. Extracting myself from Yang's grip, I shimmied across the bed and hopped down. Everyone was still asleep, which wasn't surprising given last night's 'fun.' Also we were off for the next two weeks until the next semester and so I went into the bathroom and decided to take a longer shower. Slowly washing the grit and grime from last night off, I did my usual business before I just stood still and let the water beat on my face, a smile slowly spreading. It felt good to just relax. Yes, there was still the secret war that the rest of my new team had accidentally found themselves in, but for the next few minutes I was in my own little world.

Stepping out of the shower, I could hear Weiss and Blake talking, Weiss trying to convince herself that what she had seen wasn't real, that it had all been a weird dream. I wish I could tell her it had been a dream, but I knew that she was just denying the truth and that helped no one.

Wrapping the towel around myself, I brushed my hair and teeth. Then I grabbed the clothes I had set up on the sink.

Walking out of the bathroom fully showered and clothed, I immediately felt Weiss' and Blake's eyes on me. Sighing I walked to the door.

"Come on. If we're going to be talking about this, you'll need to see something first." I said. Weiss and Blake stood up hesitantly but still curious. Weiss though still thought it wasn't true.

"I'll go with you but only because everyone else is." She said. I chuckled and began walking. Sending a text off to Ozpin, I said we would be going to the emerald forest to talk and asked if I should exclude some details.

He responded to not say anything about him and Salem, though it was up to me if I told them about the existence of magic, but the other three maidens were off limits. If I wanted to tell them about my silver eyes, that was also my decision. Anything else was also my call.

Blake was the first to ask where we were going.

"To the Emerald forest. There's something there that will help you and Weiss possibly understand, maybe even believe what I have to tell you." I explained. Blake nodded, wrapping her arms around her middle as we walked into the shade of the forest.

Walking in the direction I had committed to memory since initiation. Yang walked next to me, thankfully allowing me to collect my thoughts as she walked silently. Blake and Weiss stayed off to the side, much to my dismay, but at least they were getting along after last night.

When we finally broke through the clearing, it was Weiss who spoke up.

"Why are we back at the 'temple' Professor Ozpin made us go to for initiation." There was no snide or rude tone, just curiosity.

"Because it really was a temple." I said absentmindedly. Weiss looked at me.

"It might have been, but it's a bunch of ruins now. Especially the larger one near that ravine." She said. Blake walked right up to the one symbol that mattered on the ancient glyphs carved into the stone. My symbol, the eternal rose. She slowly put her hands near it, but didn't touch it.

Could she had already figured it out.

"Is your family as old as I think it is? Is that why you know so much about aura and semblances. All the drills and exercises you've been making us do?" She asked, not taking her eyes off the symbol in the stone and the one on my cloak.

Okay so maybe she didn't figure it out. Then again, who would.

"You could say that." I said cryptically. Just to be dramatic and have a little fun, I used the barest amount of maiden power to cause a breeze. It swept through the forest before tangling itself all around us. Yang laughed softly at my antics, but Blake and Weiss didn't react.

Party poopers.

I walked up to the rose symbol and pushed my fingers through the carving and took a centering breath.

"I don't really know where to start. I guess the best would be…well, the start." I chuckled but became serious. I took a seat on a rock nearby as Yang, Weiss, and Blake all sat down. Yang was closest to offer support, which I was grateful for.

"Before I really start I would appreciate if you kept any comments or questions to the end." I said. Weiss and Blake nodded, but Yang just smiled softly.

"To start, I am old. Very old. Nearly a thousand years. I became aware of my existence shortly after Remnants earliest recorded history. I was created by the two Gods to have ever existed, you might know them in the fairy tales of the brother Gods. They created me to watch over Remnant and its people after they had made several mistakes. In some ways I am Remnants last chance."

Nothing like the partial truth. Even though I didn't like lying, I knew that Ozpin would prefer nobody knew about him. You never knew who was one of Salem's minions.

Or who might say something to one.

"For several years after my creation I wandered, mostly. I helped people, using a sword I had found," Maybe I should tell them about the relics but then again, they were sort of related to Ozpin and Salem. "And what I thought at the time was the only semblance in existence. I wandered for nearly two hundred years, dying and coming back as my 'daughter,' when I met a human woman by the name of Indigo. Indigo Belladonna." I smiled at the memory that was so long ago. I looked over at Blake who looked at me with wide eyes.

"Yes. She is your very great grandmother. Your great grandfather was a faunus, if you were wondering." She looked at me, remaining silent and I allowed her to process the information before I started again.

"She took me to meet several others who had discovered their semblances and were also helping people. Ash Belladonna, Auburn Hess, A young woman who only ever said her name was Sage, and last but not least, Lavender Goodwitch." I paused to take a breath.

"For a year we traveled the continents and helped people, taught some of them how to use their aura and semblances. We traveled together, just us, until Ash was murdered in an act of vengeance. A little while later we discovered that Indigo had been pregnant. An old man lent us his run-down shack for her to use and that night, Flint Belladonna was born." It sucked having to skip around major parts, but I made do. I looked over and saw that I had Weiss and Blake's undivided attention.

"We traveled for many more years after that, staying in more populated places until Flint was old enough to travel with us. The girls and Flint aged but…I didn't. I eventually became Flint's 'sister,' adopted of course since he had his faunus traits, because at the time it would've looked weird for an girl in her late teens to be traveling with four girls and a faunus child." I could see Blake frowning, so I decided to skirt around the issues he faced growing up.

That was a massive can of worms.

"We were in the city of Vale when Auby was killed. A woman who was jealous of Auby set up an explosive to lure her away, except I went instead and left her alone. She killed her. when I found out I killed the murderer and to this day I still can't bring myself to regret it." I admitted. Yang put a hand on my knee and I looked at her and smiled. Talking about this wasn't nearly as painful as it used to be.

"What I do regret is that I let my anger get the best of me. I was sort of the unofficial leader of our little team, so I made the decision to stop going around from town to town. I convinced them it was too dangerous, but they wanted to continue teaching the people. I made them a compromise. We'd set up schools, all over remnant, where people could learn about Aura, the grimm, semblances, and other things. They agreed, and so we went around for five years building schools. Beacon is my favorite, though I am a bit biased since I designed most of it." I chuckled.

Yang laughed before she put a hand over mouth and looked at me with her eyes. I laughed with her for a second before I refocused myself.

"We led quiet lives after that, the girls dying until Indi and I were the only ones left. She died at the ripe old age of one hundred and two. Before she died though, she made me promise to look after your family. I went into hiding, but I did the best I could, always watching over them whenever I came out of hiding off of the island that would one day become menagerie." I explained, changing the part about how menagerie came to be. Now Weiss was looking at me with wide eyes. I could see that she was believing me, but not quite there yet. I hadn't really given any details to conclusively put myself in history.

"For a few hundred years I remained in hiding, Menagerie grew around me and the world moved on. I came out of hiding one day to find that the village the Belladonna family stayed in had been raided. The adults had all been killed but I couldn't find any of the children. Why? Because they were taken for slave labor. I was so angry I decided right then and there that I would change it. You see, I hadn't done anything yet because I believed that humanity would learn, and for the most part they had, it was the northern kingdoms of Atlas and much of Mistral that refused to change. The Kingdoms of Vale and Vacuo were mostly just indifferent to it all. It wasn't against the law there, it just wasn't very popular." I spat.

"So, I did what any sane person would; I started a revolution." I said it like it like it was the most obvious answer. "It took awhile to get everything together, during which time I found the Belladonna siblings. Coal…Coal never had a mind for tactics. For some reason it was always the Women. Preto Belladonna was a military genius, she could run circles around any human general. She took everything they had to throw at her and spat it back in their faces." I chuckled at a few fond memories. Blake was completely enraptured.

"She was a fierce woman, your great grandmother. I admired the hell out of her…loved her, actually. My biggest regret was that we could never be together…I always denied her and myself because it was less painful for me…it still hurt when she died." I confessed. Yang wrapped me in a hug as a few tears rolled down my cheeks.

"Anyways. The war changed after Fort Castle, stupid name by the way, and it didn't take long for the faunus to win their freedom. They didn't have any place to go since no kingdom would take them…so I gave them the island continent of Menagerie. It was a horrible place, but it was a place the faunus could call their own. I helped establish the 'fang, or what it's supposed to be, and hid among the faunus for a year before I had to go back into hiding. My mask had become known throughout the war and I couldn't exactly wear it every day. Despite not being human, I look pretty damn close, so I wasn't exactly the most welcome…Not until I figured out how to mask my scent anyway." I said with a smirk

"So…That's what I've been doing for the last thousand years or so…mostly just waiting in all honesty." I finished my story. It was a rather lame ending, I'll be the first to admit, but I never was much of a story teller. Weiss and Blake both looked like fish out of water until Weiss' face hardened and I could see the denial forming on her face.

"That doesn't prove anything. All it tells us is that you can tell a good story. So what's the REAL reason you survived. If it's some aura trick than you have to teach us." She said. She wasn't wrong. It was a pretty hard story to believe…so I did the only thing I could really think of…well…two things I could think of. Though the first one would only really convince Blake unfortunately….Weiss would require a more…direct approach. Sighing, I pulled out my scroll and dialed a familiar number.

" _Ruby! This is unexpected! What's the occasion?"_ Kali answered. Blake stiffened immediately at the sound of her mother's voice. " _Is Blake okay?"_ She asked with worry.

"Everything's fine Kali. But…Blake is here and…it's time. I've already told her but…I need the picture." I said. I could see Kali's face getting serious as soon as I said it was time, and she nodded when I asked for the picture. She grabbed her scroll and Blake watched with wide eyes as her mother pulled down a box she had never seen before, the side was clearly labeled 'B & M' Though Blake didn't know anybody with the first name starting in M.

" _Are you sure Ruby?"_ Kali was worried what this might do to Blake, but I knew this needed to happen. Blake was always going to learn, just as her parents had requested of me when I began watching over her.

"I'm sure. This was always going to happen anyway." I said softly. Kali nodded as she pulled out an old picture. The confusion was evident on her face, because she had seen every picture from her childhood and knew every label on the backs of them, but this one was marked 'B & M' again, but with a 'Blakes first birthday' on it. Kali had a small smile on her face as she looked at the picture before she remembered why she was holding it.

She turned it around and I smiled softly as a picture of me holding a baby Blake in my arms. She was wrapped in my then mahogany, as that was my name at the time, cloak. She was smiling up at me with a toothless grin. In my hand was a bandanna that I had given her. It had just a smidge of magic imbued into the fabric. A simple spell, one that made her know she was always loved by someone.

She still has it wrapped around her bicep to this day.

I looked over at Blake who was looking at me with her amber eyes blown wide.

I was afraid that she wouldn't blink, that's how wide they were. Hanging up the call I spoke to Blake.

"I saved you and your parents when they were on a boat heading through Grimm infested waters. I hadn't had time to clear a path yet, so I just hopped on the boat once I got word your father was meeting with several councilors from Vale to discuss a trade agreement. A Grimm attacked, and I saved your family's life. Later, your father remembered the story of the Belladonna guardian, and tracked me down. For a few years I acted as a guard. You wouldn't remember me because I always had my hood up and scent masked. I stopped guarding your family when Ghira stepped down and you stayed in the 'fang. They asked me to watch over you and so I did." I shrugged my shoulders.

Blake's ears flattened against her head in shame at the thought that I had seen the things she had done with the 'fang.

"I do not hold your past against you Blake." I said softly as I put my hand on her shoulder. "You fought for what you thought was right, just like your great grandmother. Was it always the best way to do things? Maybe not. But you Fought for equality, for freedom. Preto would've smacked you upside the head first, but then she would've hugged you and told you to make it better." I said. I smacked her head playfully and she gave a watery smile. I leaned in to hug her and she hugged back.

Behind me, I could still feel that Weiss was a bit hesitant to agree, so I made up my mind on what I had to do

Turning to her and breaking the hug with Blake, I reached my hand out to her.

"I can show you everything I just told you, but you have to relax or else what I'm about to do might hurt you." I explained. Weiss wanted to believe, she really did, so she nodded. Standing up off the ground I walked over to her then knelt down. I took her head in my hands and began to concentrate my magic. This was a trick I had learned centuries ago, but only mastered it during the revolution.

Memory sharing.

I felt the Magic begin to flow from my fingertips into Weiss' temples, where my fingers were resting, and my memories began flashing in quick succession behind my closed eyes. Weiss was able to see everything, and I tried to ignore her tensing up as she flashed through some of the memories of me in more…violent moments.

When it was all said and done, Weiss was panting like she had gone several rounds with an Ursai and gotten hit repeatedly. She leaned over and puked, thankfully not on me, before putting her hed in her hands to steady herself.

"You really weren't lying." She said quietly. It was a statement so I didn't bother answering.

She looked at me eventually.

"You look pretty damn good for a thousand." She weakly joked.

"Well it is all in the moisturizer." I said with a smirk. She gave a barking laugh and quieted down as she accepted everything I had told her and shown her.

"So what happens now?" Blake asked.

"Well…" I rubbed the back of my neck. I couldn't exactly tell them that whatever war was coming would likely wrap them up into it as well. So I went with an easy out.

"I have no idea." I said sheepishly with a toothy grin.

The girls just groaned as they laid back on the grass of the clearing

I

 **So the holiday season has been absolutely crazy for me. I promised I would cut down on writing during the holidays so that I could spend time with my family and it did impact the posting schedule. Sorry to any of you who look forward to new chapters but what's done is done so we'll move on. Now, I should be getting back on track in the next few days as work returns back to normal.**

 **One more thing. Have a happy new year, everyone.**


	13. Chapter 13: Story Telling

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Thirteen: Story telling**

Once the food fight was all said and done, Glynda was mad. She reminded of Lavender in many ways, but not in the ones that counted in all honesty. I was broken out of my musings when my team and I finally reached our dorm.

"Yang, you shower off first. It's gonna be a nightmare getting all that food and stuff out of your hair. The rest of us will wait. Try not to take forever though." I said. Yang smiled and she practically ran to the shower.

I came to regret letting her go first when my hair began sticking to my head, as did Weiss and Blake.

Yang trotted out nearly a half hour later, all cheery and a wide smile full of pearly white teeth.

"We all hate you just so you know." Yang gulped at the look in my eye. A look I used to use on her when I first began training her.

She used to be a lot cockier.

"I'll go last so you and Weiss decide who gets in the shower first I guess." I jumped up in my bed, not really caring about how messy I was since it had all dried anyway. I heard Weiss let Blake take the shower, which was honestly a bit surprising.

I didn't really care though, so I closed my eyes and took a nap.

I woke up an hour later to someone shaking my shoulder. It was Blake.

We were alone in the dorm when I opened my bleary eyes.

"Hey. Weiss and Yang left with JNPR to go into Vale for some 'last day of the break celebration.' Yang took them all to a club or something. That's not really my thing and Yang told me it wasn't yours either so I guess it's just us." She said lightly.

"That's cool I guess. Just hope they didn't go to Juniors." The way Blake tensed slightly wasn't confidence inspiring. "It is what it is I guess. She's gonna be the reason I go bankrupt though, I swear!" I laughed to myself. Blake just looked confused.

"You didn't think I could just disappear over and over again without money, or feed myself, or even clothe myself did you?" I teased. Blake just stared with her mouth open.

"seriously…so…how much money do you have?" She asked in astonishment.

"Honestly…probably more than Weiss, though it's all in dozens of accounts under dozens of names. Technically, Ruby Rose only has a few thousand lien to her name." I explained. Blake's eyes got wide again before she composed herself and nodded. Blake looked at me for a few seconds, her nose twitching along with her bow.

"You should probably shower. You fell asleep still wearing todays meal." She explained as she picked up a small scrap of turkey that had fallen onto my bed.

"Thanks. After I'm done, wanna go grab some tea from the cafeteria? If you want I can attempt to make that jasmine tea like your mothers?" I asked. I jumped off the bed then thought for a second. "Actually, I might have some of the tea leaves left from the last time I visited!" I jumped over to my bag, not caring about the orange slices falling off me as I moved. Digging through my bag until I got to my hidden compartment, I pulled out the last remainder of the tea leaves.

"Surprisingly there's enough left for two!" I declared as I held up the small container triumphantly. I looked over at Blake who had small tears in her eyes.

"I haven't had my mother's tea in years." She said quietly as a tear began to fall down her face.

"I know. Blake…" I hesitated. "Your mother and father don't blame you or resent you for the choices you made, because that's what they were, yours. They weren't going to take that from you, even if it hurt to let you go." I said slowly and quietly. Blake looked down as more tears started to fall. Moving to sit next to her, I put an arm around her shoulders.

"They Love you so much. Every time I called them with an update on your movements or exploits, the first thing they asked before I could say anything was 'Is Blake okay?' and I would always tell them that you were in good health." I chuckled at the many memories.

"You were watching me weren't you? That's what you meant when you said you would give them updates." It was a statement, full of surprise though.

"Yes. Totally not creepy I promise. I just made sure you weren't hurt, and if it looked like you might be then I acted. May I just say that you are a remarkable fighter, by the way. For all his faults, Adam knew what he was doing when he taught you. I rarely ever had to step in." I said. There was no judgement in my tone, something Blake seemed to sense.

"So you've seen…everything?" She was hesitant, so I thought just laying it all out there for her was best.

"Mostly everything. I only really trailed you on missions, but I was able to piece many things together through some of my informants." I admitted. Blakes surprise was expected, as was her next question.

"How were you never caught?"

I just gave her a bland look before pointing at myself with the question of 'Really?' On my face.

"I'm a thousand years old. I got bored and decided to learn everything I could about fighting. Of course I learned how to be sneaky." I was proud of my skills, they had taken years to hone.

"Yeah I should've seen that coming I guess." Blake laughed a little.

"Anyways." I got her attention again. "Was everything you did for the 'fang great. No. Your fought for what you thought was right and when you saw the harm it was really doing, you got out. I was very proud of you when cut the cable on that train." I said to her. She nodded slowly again.

"Wanna know a secret?" I asked slyly, a huge grin on my face. Blake looked at me and saw my smile and gave a small one herself.

"Sure, go ahead." She said in a resigned tone, but there was curiosity beneath it.

"If you look hard enough on the boarding manifest, you'll find the fake name I boarded that very train under." I joked. Blake's head whipped to me so fast I thought she might have broken her neck. Before she could say anything I zipped around the room for some comfortable clothes, my towel, and my toiletries before zipping into the bathroom and leaving the dorm with a tornado of rose petals.

Oh well, they would disappear in a minute anyway.

I

When I finished in the shower, I came out to the most shocking of sights.

Blake was reading a book.

Okay maybe that wasn't surprising, but what was, was that she wasn't reading anything steamy. It was a perfectly normal book about Remnants legends and tall tales.

"Did you know you were in this?" She asked as I pulled out the tea bag and grabbed our dorm key. Blake set the book down and grabbed a mug from her own collection as I did the same.

"Of course I knew. There's always truth in legends. Some of them ended up combining me with the dark witch in some of the stories, others portray me as an angel sent to fix remnant, and a few paint me as a silent guardian." I said as I opened the door and walked down the hall towards the cafeteria. We passed the clocktower and I saw the faintest outline of Ozpin through the glass. I looked at the time though and saw that it was nearing eight-thirty.

"So would you mind telling me what's true and what's not?" Her curious nature was showing in spades and it was nice to have someone who knew my secret that I could talk about this with. Sure I had Yang and Ozpin, and to some extent Tai, but this felt different.

"I can tell you some things to a certain extent…some myths…should stay buried." I said darkly. Blake nodded in understanding. "What's the first thing you want to know?"

"Well…what about the forgotten Kingdom…The one to the north west that's sorta shaped like a dragon?" She asked.

"Starting off kind of heavy are we?" I teased. "Okay. The forgotten Kingdom was where the Dark brother, one of the ones who created me if you remember, lived for a while. It was infested with Grimm so that he could spite his brother." I summarized. It was true to a certain extent. "Funnily enough, the vague serpentine shape at the top of Anima is where the Light brother lived." I added. Blake looked at me in fascination.

"Any other questions?" I asked. She shook herself free and thought about another question.

"Okay…What about the maidens. You said all legends have some truth, right?" She asked quickly. I took a moment to think about my answer, since Ozpin had me not to really talk about them.

"They were real. They were my friends actually. The group I told you about, your very great grandmother was one of them." I said quietly. Blake picked up on my sudden sadness and rushed to say something.

"It's okay. You don't have to say anything if you don't want to."

"No. It's fine. I like talking about them. They were the seasonal maidens as they came to be called. When they died, the magic faded and died with them. So yes, there were maidens, but they were a one-off thing." Maybe someday I could tell her the full truth. This would have to do for now though. Blake looked at me before hesitantly asking,

"Which maiden was Ind-my very great grandmother?" I looked at her and my response was soft.

"The winter maiden. Her mastery over the wintery elements was incredible to watch, especially when she could practically form glaciers out of nothing. She did that once actually, a few cities were struggling with a drought, so she formed a few glaciers and the problem was solved." I smiled as I remembered Indi complaining how cold she was after that.

"She was an amazing woman. They all were." I said, lost in the memories of the past. Blake pulled me out again though with another question.

"Can you tell me more about my Grandmother…About Preto?"

I looked at her again and Looked to the ground, nodding my head slowly. I took a deep, steadying breath, and spoke about the woman I had come to love.

"I watched over your grandmother for a year after she was born, same as I had done for every Belladonna child. Once I was sure she was at least going to make it out of her infancy, I was forced to go into hiding when one of my agents contacted me and told me somebody was sniffing around my legends. That's a story for another time but anyways, I had to go into hiding for a few years. When I came out…Preto and her brother had been taken, and their parents were killed. Slavers from northern anima had gone on a war path, taking all of the faunus they could find. I was to late to help Shade and his Coalette, but I could save their children." I paused to gather myself.

"They had been sent to Atlas for slavery, which was honestly the best thing that could have happened to them since Atlas loved to…experiment…from time to time. I quietly broke them out and took them to a base I had set up. The faunus I had freed along the way were also there…it was because Preto and her brother had been taken that I decided I had to interfere in human development, something I had sworn I wouldn't do. Like I said earlier, I started the revolution. But Preto…She saved it. Without her, the war would have been lost." I said. I was becoming lost in my memories, but I didn't care.

"She wanted to join the revolution the moment the faunus were ready for combat, but I forbade it for six months until she stormed into a meeting between command members and demanded to be a part of it. I was going to say no as I usually did." I smiled as I paused, but the anticipation was killing Blake.

"So what happened?" She asked impatiently. I smiled again. Once a lover of stories, always a lover of stories.

"I was getting to that." I teased. "Anyway, I was going to say no when she began eyeing the map of the battlefield we were going to ambush the Atlesians on. She got this intense look of concentration on her face. The generals weren't happy when she began drawing soldiers movements on it, but when I looked at what she had drawn, I was impressed. We had been debating for nearly an hour on the best strategy and here came a young panther with no experience just schooling us for all our worth." The memory was fond, and I couldn't help the bittersweet tears that came loose.

"The ambush was flawless, and since I was the temporary high leader, since the faunus didn't have time to establish who was in charge, I made her a lieutenant to start. She quickly proved she was general material and so I had no choice but to make her one. The war wasn't great those first few years, and it was Preto's actions at fort castle, which I still think is a stupid name, that turned the war around." I said. Blake looked like she had a question so I gave her the chance.

"What about after the war?" Blake asked.

"Once the war was over, no kingdom would take the faunus either because there truly was no room, or they didn't want the faunus anywhere near them. She campaigned for a year but nobody would take them. I was about to go into hiding again, since my involvement had put a spotlight on me that I didn't want, when she begged me to her. I couldn't say no." I said fondly.

"I gave the faunus Menagerie, even though it was honestly terrible to live, but they took it. fought for every inch of land with such determination. Once they felt they had enough land, they stopped and as one people practically begged Preto to be high leader. She accepted, and formed the White Fang as a way to maintain the peace they had found themselves with. She was only twenty seven and she had the burden of a nation on her shoulders. I stayed for a few years, where we were together off and on, but I had to leave again. I stayed in menagerie too long, amongst the faunus I had fought with, and some were beginning to ask questions. Some even thought she was a human sympathizer. I felt awful the way I ended it with her…telling her that I couldn't be with her because I couldn't watch her grow old and die…." I stopped, tears in my eyes and my heart breaking all over again. Blake put a hand around my shoulder.

"I've never told Yang the truth. It was easier to tell her that I just left, telling Preto that I couldn't be with her because of what I was. In truth, Preto and I deeply loved each other." I sobbed. I truly had never told the truth to anybody but Blake because it hurt so much to think about what could have been.

I felt Blake wrapping me in a tight hug and I leaned into it and sobbed harder. We sat like that for a few minutes as I just cried. Blake just held me in a silent embrace and rocked back and forth in a calming gesture. When I pulled myself together, my throat was a bit dry so my voice sounded scratchy.]

"This probably isn't how you thought your day would go, huh?" I weakly joked.

"No…but I'm not complaining." She said. There was a slight blush to her cheeks as I untangled myself from her.

"Were there…any other questions, keeping in mind that I may start bawling my eyes out again if it gets to heavy." I chuckled. Blake shook her head.

"No. I think that's been enough emotional digging for one day." She chuckled as well.

We both decided we'd had enough of just sitting around and went for a walk, talking about nothing really. School was a big topic. Blake was pretty jealous that I didn't honestly need school so I never studied because I knew so much and always passed. The truth of the matter was, that I could write anything on my papers and pass because of the deal I had with Ozpin. I don't have to do any work so that I can focus more on the mission. Speaking of, my scroll went off.

"Hello?" I stopped walking and Blake stopped with me. The voice of one of my agents came through the speaker.

" _Tukson's dead. Murdered."_ They spoke swiftly. I drew in a breath.

"Okay. Disappear for a few weeks just in case. I'll start poking around and see what turns up." I ordered. There was a hum on the line until it went dead, and I put my scroll away.

"Everything okay?" Blake asked. I sighed and began explaining.

"It never fails. There are what I call 'Legend hunters' across remnant. Some are just harmless and believe the legends exist. Very rarely, there are extremists who believe its true, and since there are legends about me across all of remnant, I'm one of the more believable legends. These extremists like to hunt for legends, and if they have to, kill for answers. Tukson, the owner of the bookstore in Vale, was my informant. Somehow, this is either a coincidence, or someone is on my trail." I said gravely. Blake looked startled, but not that much.

"So what's going to happen?" She asked calmly.

"First off, you'r way to calm, second, nothing really. There are certain things I need to look into first before I even consider disappearing." I said. There was a finality in my voice that Blake accepted, so she nodded my explanation. It wasn't the entire truth so I just left it at that. Tukson really was one of my agents, there were no 'legend hunters' but I knew it must have been one of Salem's goons that got to him. I pulled out my scroll and set a reminder to drop off a care package for Tukson's family.

Blake and I walked back to our dorm in relative silence. I talked about some of the history of Beacon, just listing random facts about the building process and things of that nature.

When we were back at the dorm, Blake and I changed into comfy clothes since it was nearly five in the evening. Weiss and Yang, along with team JNPR, were due back any minute.

We didn't have to wait very long, and I knew it wasn't going to be a great 'welcome home' when Yang walked in first, an apologetic look on her face. I was about to ask why when Weiss came in in a huff. Again, I was about to ask why when she cut me off.

"I've done a lot of thinking about everything you said, Ruby Rose. A lot. There was one thing that kept bugging me about your story, especially the part where you started the faunus revolution. I finally figured it out." Weiss was huffing and it was starting to frustrate me a little. I hadn't lied about what I said, and if Weiss didn't believe me that was her problem. I was completely caught off guard when she accused me.

"You're The Demon aren't you?" She hissed. My blood froze in my veins, my eyes widened, and I wished I could be anywhere but here.

 **A/N So sorry about the delayed update. This Chapter was a bit difficult to write since I had a bit of writers block. I got it to a point where I can say I'm satisfied with it. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, maybe the small cliffhanger, and I'll see you in the next update.**


	14. Chapter 14: The Demon

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Fourteen: The Demon**

"You're the Demon aren't you?" Weiss hissed. Yang sighed and went to her bed but me? My blood ran cold. I thought I had buried that moniker so far in the dirt that not even the souls of the damned could find it.

At least I thought I did.

The Demon was a name I had earned amongst the Atlesian elite during the faunus revolution. The Demon had a reputation of destroying those who would not release their faunus slaves, sometimes even making the slaves fight against other faunus in the war. The Demon was a symbol of faunus vengeance and anger at the slavers…the Demon was a monster. It was easy for me to do the things I did under that name because I kept imagining what the Atlesian military had done to Preto, to so many others.

When I wasn't commanding an army, I was doing a lot of knife jobs. Atlas high command was practically a shell of itself before before the end of the war they couldn't continue the war effort. I did a lot of in and out work, destroying resources and stealing information as well whenever I could.

Preto said the war would've been lost or dragged out if I hadn't done the things I did as the Demon.

I've hated myself for my actions ever since. For all the lives I took and ruined.

Snapping back to the present, I took in a deep steadying breath.

"I was, yes." I answered. Weiss glared at me for a good few seconds before her anger ebbed slightly.

"You know, it was my family who put the largest bounty on your head…it's still good actually." She huffed.

"Are you gonna try and turn me in for it?" I joked. Weiss glared again but shook her head.

"No. Nobody would believe me anyway, even if I wanted to." She groused.

"How did you figure that out, anyway?" I wasn't mad…just frustrated that, even as an immortal, I couldn't seem to get away from the things I'd done.

"There were stories about you. Told to children who misbehave. That the demon would come to reap their souls if they kept being bad. I'd been told the story enough when I was younger that I remembered it…scared me enough to be the perfect girl my father wanted." Weiss said quietly.

"I hated that story." She continued. "I was so afraid to do anything but what my father told me to do because the Demon would return and take me away." She said. Sitting on her bed roughly, Weiss put her head in her hands and cried.

"I don't know anything anymore, because I just always did what my father wanted until I finally told myself it was just a story. Turns out you're real and I just don't know anymore!" She cried.

Watching Weiss of all people lose her composure was a shock. Knowing it was because of one of my darker sides hurt.

"Do you wanna know the truth Weiss?" I asked as I sat next to her. Blake and Yang sat on the floor to comfort their teammate turned close friend. Weiss just looked at me with teary red eyes. She didn't say anything so I took her silence as an affirmative.

"When I was the Demon…I made it a rule never to hurt the children. Children are sacred to me because each represents an infinite amount of possibilities. No matter what…the sins of the past should never stain the future generations. I lived by that saying whenever I put on the mask. The children were always safe from me…in fact I made it a point to protect the children." I explained. Weiss looked at me with wide eyes

"Sometimes I would take them back to the war camp. There's a reason not every faunus on a Menagerie is one hundred percent faunus." I said with a slight laugh. Blake looked at me in shock and I laughed harder.

"Don't worry Blake. You're a hundred percent panther…actually…ninety-eight. The other two is a jaguar." I laughed at her expression. Standing up I pulled Weiss to her feet.

"Come on. Go change out of your clothes and into some pajamas. We're all gonna go down to the cafeteria and grab some hot cocoa." Blake looked at with a raised eyebrow. "And tea. Duh." I rolled my eyes. Yang took off her jacket, leaving her in only a bra, got her sweatpants from the drawer and put them on, then pulled the 'scarf' she wore around her neck down to reveal a shirt.

"Really Yang." I deadpanned. "When was the last time you washed that?"

She shrugged and put her slippers on just as Weiss walked out in a nightgown, her hair down around her shoulders. Blake slipped into the bathroom and came out a minute later in her nightdress. I just turned into a tornado of rose petals and was changed into my sleepwear before anyone could say anything. I snickered then fell over laughing as Weiss and Blake spat rose petals out of their mouths while Yang just had her mouth closed.

With a huge grin on her face.

Once Weiss and Blake were done being dramatic, we walked down to the cafeteria for some much-needed hot cocoa. Don't get me wrong, tea was great, but I still believe that hot cocoa was one of humanity's best ideas. As we walked, Blake lagged a bit, lost in thought. It was weird since she was always very aware of her surroundings.

In the cafeteria, Blake was paying even less attention, nearly dropping her tea after she had made it. Something was up.

"What's wrong Blake? You're never this distracted." I observed. She shook herself back to the present when I poked her to get her attention and then I repeated my question.

"Oh. Nothing." She dismissed. Oh no. We're a team. She reminded me of Indigo and Preto way too much.

"Nope. We're a team." I said softly. She looked at each of us for a second before nodding her head.

"It's about the docks. Why the 'fang are working with a guy like Torchwick…I can't figure it out." She admitted. I thought for a second. It was pretty strange.

"It is weird, but what are we gonna do about it? Ozpin told us…well…except for Ruby, not to worry about it. Between all the people working on these cases, I'm sure that they can handle it." Yang said. She shrugged her shoulders, but Blake got to her feet, nearly knocking her tea over.

"Well I'm not! They don't know the 'fang like I do!" Blake raised her voice. Thankfully there was nobody else in the cafeteria since it was late.

"Blake. Besides Ruby, none of us has the experience to do anything significant against the ne'er do wells of the White Fang and the criminal underbelly of Vale." Weiss reasoned. "We're students, and we're not ready for this kind of action."

"We may never be ready, but the danger the white fang poses is very real, especially if they've teamed up with a human like Torchwick. It means there's something going and they're not gonna wait around for us to be ready. They're gonna finish what they're doing before we even get a chance to 'be ready.'" Blake Ranted.

"She's right. I hate to admit it but she's right." I spoke up. Weiss looked at me like I was crazy, but Blake didn't look thrilled that I didn't totally support her.

"What about the revolution! You waited until the faunus were ready before you began the war." Weiss tried to reason again.

"There were many who thought we weren't…And that was true. But the Atlesian military was very close to figuring out where we were and would have sent an army to wipe us out…It was because I set up an ambush that Atlas had to delay their war efforts and gave us time to consolidate more resources and move bases." I explained. Weiss looked at me with a huff and turned away discouraged.

"That being said…Weiss is also right. You three aren't really ready for the level of work this is going to require." I said hesitantly. Before Blake could leave in a flurry of righteous anger I shut it down quick. "However, we don't have a choice. We each have a lot of connections that are likely to help us do better than the police ever will. It's our duty as huntresses to see this through." The finality of my tone made Weiss' protests die in her throat.

"We'll make a plan, but neither of us are going anywhere until the weekend, seeing as it's Thursday tomorrow, it gives us an extra day to come up with a halfway decent plan which I will either deny or accept." Blake and Weiss were about to protest again but I wasn't having any of it, especially since my cocoa had gone cold.

"No. That's the deal. I'm allowing you, since Yang doesn't care either way, to prove to me you can handle the stress, and in return, I'll talk to Ozpin about going on slightly harder missions in the future." I bargained. Weiss seemed to accept the deal and Blake did to some degree.

"Well." I said as I got to my feet. "Since my cocoas cold and I'm tired, we should all head to bed. Big day of planning ahead of us." I said.

We walked back to our dorm in silence and finally made it after what felt like a long trudge. I jumped onto my bed and fell into a slightly peaceful sleep.

When I woke up, there was a message from Ozpin.

' _You're excused from your classes for today, but you'll hate me when you see why.'_ Was all it said. When I looked out the window, I knew why.

General Ironwood was here.

Gods kill me.

Grumbling as I dressed, I headed out the door alone. Weiss, Blake, and Yang had already gone to class, but hopefully I would get to meet up with them later, especially when I saw the note on the door.

' _Rubes, we got messages from Ozpin saying you weren't gonna be in class. Whenever you're done with the thing, meet us in the library_

 _-Yang'_

I don't know why she bothered to sign it, not like I wouldn't recognize my sisters handwriting, terrible as it was. I laughed to myself as I left the dorm, locking it before walking towards the clocktower.

When I finally made it, I just used a card Ozpin had given me to use whenever Glynda wasn't around to buzz me up, like now since she was teaching.

Walking out of the elevator, it looked like Ironwood had only just gotten here.

"Ah. James, I would like to introduce you to Ruby Rose. Ruby, This is James Ironwood, General in the Atlas military and head of Atlas' academy." Ozpin politely introduced. I looked at Ironwood unimpressed.

"Are those ugly eyesores you call airships supposed to tell everyone that we aren't in a time of peace or are you trying to make up for something." I said in frustration. Ironwood's 'displays of power' were well known across all of remnant, even when he was an up and coming commander. This whole display just screamed 'Hey! We're totally doing this because we have peace and not for any other reason.'

"Her insubordination would be nonexistent if she went to Atlas, Ozpin." He said dismissively. Ozpin just looked at me and spoke.

"James and I have already discussed his grandiose display of power, but you're here for a different reason Ruby." Ozpin explained. I nodded for him to continue and he walked around his desk with his cane. He offered me a cup of coffee, which I hadn't seen, and I gratefully took it.

"I've never explained nor fully filled James in about who you are, past or present. I had hoped, with your permission, that we could change that. He knows about the existence of the maidens, but not you specifically." Ozpin said slowly. I nodded my acceptance because honestly, despite my misgivings, having a man in charge of an army who listened to the maidens might be helpful.

"This girl knows about the war we're waging? How can she possibly help us?" Ironwood said indignantly. I was about to show off, but Ozpin stopped me with a small wave of his hand. I begrudgingly backed down and he looked to Ironwood.

"Ruby Rose is the Fall maiden. She hid herself for reasons only she truly knows." Oz explained calmly. Ironwood just looked at me and squinted his eyes in scrutiny.

"So, she's the Fall maiden. Yes, I've had my agents looking for her and the half-maiden, but how does her being here help us. She's no more powerful than the others." Ironwood dismissed.

"No James…She's THE Fall maiden. There has only ever been two."

I don't know how Ozpin wasn't frustrated. This was typical of a man like Ironwood. He knew the Legends and was part of Ozpins 'order.' Maybe Ozpin didnt want him to know there was another immortal on remnant

"I never told you, but centuries ago I came across a young woman who was an immortal, not Salem, but miss Rose here." Ozpin said. Ironwood looked at me, then at Ozpin, then back to me.

"Are there any MORE immortals you haven't told me about." James deadpanned. I laughed a little and so did Ozpin.

"No. Ruby?" He asked.

"No. None I was ever aware of, and I know arguably a bit more than you." I explained. Both Ironwood and Ozpin both shrugged.

"I should probably meet up with my team. We have to go over some school stuff, mostly me helping them, so I should probably be going if there's nothing left to talk about." I said. Ozpin nodded but before I left I looked at Ironwood seriously.

"I hope you'll keep this a secret. The last thing I want is the world knowing who I am, what I am, and what I can do." I said before jumping in the elevator. I would have to keep an eye on him for a little while, just to be on the safe side.

I met the team in the library where poor Ren and Jaune were studying, Jaune though was being gently nudged along by Pyrrha. WBY was playing 'Remnant the board game' and Weiss was being destroyed by Nora.

"Hey sis! You just missed the beginning of the game!" She said loudly. I hushed her since we were still in the library and walked over to the table.

"Yeah. Totally. You knew I was coming and totally weren't scared that I'd whoop your butt again…like I always do." I gave her a cheeky grin and she balked.

"No. That's not-no. Not true at all." She stuck her tongue out at me and then proceeded to destroy Weiss' hopes and dreams. Jaune decided enough studying and went to try and flirt with Weiss. When he tried to join, Blake just got u, a glum expression on her face, and gave him her cards as Sun and Neptune walked in.

Blake and Sun talked for a minute before Blakes attitude got the best of her and she left. I decided to follow her, making sure Yang knew to grab the game.

"Blake wait up!" I called as she headed down the hallway to our dorm. Thankfully she did wait, and I caught up with her.

"What's wrong? You've been an even moodier version of yourself lately. You can talk to us, to me if you need it." I said gently. Blake didn't seem to appreciate it though.

"What? Like you talk to us about your nightmares or PTSD?" She bit. The look on her face told me she regretted it as her eyes widened and her hand went to her mouth not a second after the words left. They hurt, but I knew something else was bothering her.

"I'm sor-That- I didn't mean-" She stumbled over her words in an attempt at an apology but it didn't really bother me.

"Blake. Stop. First, let's get in the dorm." Once that was done and the door was closed I spoke again. "First, do you see any ad's for therapists that can cater to immortals?" I joked. "Second…My life, past, and mind are all things that work themselves out eventually. It's been that way for a thousand years and it's likely to continue for another thousand." I explained. Blake's head dipped in shame.

"I appreciate that you want to help me…I truly do." I said as I hugged her tightly. ""But people will never understand the things I've done, lived through. The only reason I'm still functioning is because I have too. There's still work that needs to be done." I explained. Blake wiggled out of the hug and looked me in the eyes.

"I'm sorry you had to go through those things Ruby. To see the things you did…" She trailed off towards the end.

"I'm not." I said after a second of silence. " I wouldn't be who I am or have gotten where I am without those experiences." I explained to her softly. She looked at me again, appraising my words and nodded when she accepted them.

A little while later, Blake and I were each in our respective beds reading a book. Mine was a bit older though, in a dead language since it was over five hundred years old, when she spoke up. I had felt her eyes on me for the last few minutes, so I knew there was something she wanted to ask.

"You have a house right?"

That was totally not what I thought she'd ask.

"Yeah? Why?"

"Well I just wondered if you had a lot of books or old trinkets here and there. You seem to enjoy reading, and I see that the book you have is clearly old, so I was wondering if you have more…" She said. Now I knew what she was wondering.

"You're wondering if you can borrow any of them, aren't you?" I teased with a smile on my face. The answer came when Blake hid a bit behind the book she was reading.

"I don't mind, but most of the good one's were handwritten in a language only I can really read these days." I admitted.

"I'd still like to see them if that's possible." Blake said.

"I'll go home during a significant break and get some of the books easier to translate or ones that don't need it and bring a few for you." I suggested.

"I'd like that a lot." Blake said easily. She sounded excited and I couldn't help but smile.

A few minutes later, Yang and Weiss walked in. I saw team JNPR walking into their dorms and waved as Pyrrha waved before entering their dorm. Yang closed our door before jumping up to her own bed after sliding my boardgame under Weiss' bed.

"We should work on our plan guys. We'll start tomorrow after classes and work through the weekend like we discussed." I said. Everyone sat up from their beds as I jumped down and walked over to my bag and pulled out a few maps and notebooks. "Study these. These are all the people I pay in Vale as well as their contact information." I said as I pointed out names and scroll contact information. Weiss looked impressed at the amount of money I spent on the information network I ran.

"Jeez Ruby! How much do you have!"

"More than you'd like to think I have." I said dismissively as I pulled out another book. Thankfully Weiss let it drop.

"yang, I know you'll want to go somewhere else but I need you to talk to Junior for me. He'll know your coming this time and won't have guns on you since I paid him off." I said. yang had a determined look on her face and nodded.

"Weiss…I think you should handle finding out whatever dust shipment Torchwick and the 'fang might hit next. That's clearly the connection between all of this. They're stockpiling dust." Weiss nodded but seemed a bit unsure. "You can do this Weiss. Let me know if you run into any troubles and I'll have one of my agents get what we need the old-fashioned way." I said. Weiss nodded again but with a little more oomph. I looked at Blake finally.

"You know the 'fang best so what can you tell me?" I asked. Blake immediately launched into anything that could help us. Eventually she got to recruitment.

"That's it. We'll use the recruitment process to figure out more details about their plan." I ordered.

"What are you gonna do though?" Yang asked as an afterthought.

"I'll be looking into the murder of one of my agents. His name was Tukson and he left the 'fang. I need to figure out if his death relates to that or if someone knew who he was working for." I said seriously. The look in my eyes must've told Yang not to say anymore.

By the time we were done hashing out a halfway decent plan, it was pretty late.

"Damn I'm hungry." I muttered as I sat up in bed. Weiss and Blake had already gotten ready for bed and Yang had another twenty minutes to go before she was done. I saw an opportunity and decided to get something from the cafeteria.

Opening the door, I turned right and walked straight into another student and knocked her over. She had green hair and dark skin…but a uniform from Haven academy. A student here for the festival then? I reached out a hand to help her.

"My apologies Miss. I wasn't paying attention." I said kindly. She took my hand and accepted the apology but was clearly frustrated at being knocked over, which was understandable. It was the person next to her that got my attention.

Mercury Black.

Shit.

Then that means-

"We're visitors from Haven and got turned around." A new voice joined the mix, and I instantly recognized the power that flowed from her. Thankfully as a rule I suppressed my own unique maiden magic with the aid of my other magic. Not for this specific reason, but just as a rule of thumb so I don't use it whenever I feel like it.

"Then you're here for the festival!" I said with false cheer. The assholes that tried to kill Terra were here and I needed to find out why before I ended them. "Visitor's dorms are just east of here." I said as the woman past me.

"Thanks, maybe we'll see you around." She said.

As she turned a corner I muttered.

"Yes…Yes you will." In my anger I let a bit my silver eyed magic go, making the white flames come out slightly.

AN: I'm back on track now. Hopefully. Maybe. School starts back up for me soon so the posting schedule might change again. Anyways, I posted a new story because why not. It's been in the works for awhile now and it's called 'Supergirl Lost.' You can find it on my page or in the Avengers category ;) Actually, that may change but I'll keep the people who are interested posted about any changes. Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'll see you in the next one.

PS- I goofed a bit when I was editing this chapter and writing the next one at the same time before I posted this one. My bad and i hope you can forgive me. On the Plus side, i guess you guys know who will be showing up in a bit ;)


	15. Chapter 15 No Rest

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Fifteen: No Rest…**

It was the last class of the day, which unfortunately meant we had professor Port's class. It seemed to drag on for what felt like hours, even while I was trying to pass the time by sketching out weapon designs, and talking with my agents, that were unreasonably complicated.

Even Weiss was watching the clock.

Sort of.

Jaune wasn't helping the clock move any slower for her as he tried to get her to go to the dance with him.

Poor kid. She was about to go on a mission, and that meant focus. Focus that she couldn't give to Jaune.

When the bell finally wrung, we all walked out as a team while Weiss just answered all of Jaunes questions about the dance with a no. We walked to the dorm, all the while I was keeping an eye out for that woman and her little minions. I had to tell Ozpin when I got back tonight, so I set a reminder on my phone. I also sent out a picture of Mercury and a description of the green haired girl to my agents.

Hopefully they would find a lead.

Closing the door, I leaned against the desk, my hands resting on the desktop by my side.

"We all clear on the plan?" I asked as everyone readied their weapons. Mine was always meticulously maintained, as it had been this morning before I left for class, so I didn't need to worry about it tonight.

Everyone recited their respective roles and when I was satisfied, I put my hand on the door and was about to step out when I heard something outside. It wasn't a bird, a knew that much, so I burst open the window and dragged two spies inside. At least I thought they were until Blake said something.

"Sun? Neptune?" She asked incredulously.

"Hey guys. How's it hangin'" He asked nervously as I stared at him.

"How long were you there?" I asked tightly.

"Uhhhh…you know…long enough." He said as he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. I breathed through my nose before looking at Neptune.

"I already know you both but my question is; why are you here…Why were you just hanging out around the window?"

"Oh. Well…you know…We just hoped you guys were going after that Torchwick guy." Sun finally admitted. Blake stepped forward.

"Sun. We're investigating this together. As a team." She said, emphasizing that it was only going to be us doing the investigating.

"No." I spoke up. I knew that there was strength in numbers. Blake was less likely to be caught by any higher ups in the 'fang. She became defensive when I relayed that to her.

"Blake. You and I both know you had a lot of notoriety in the 'fang. Adam won't just let you go and you know that." I explained calmly.

"There's a job to be done, and nobody, not even you, is gonna stop me." She said with determination.

"I know. Which is why Sun will be going with you as backup." I explained. Blake looked sharply at the other faunus and then at me.

"It's either he goes with you, or I do." I gave her a choice.

"What about your sort of related mission?" She asked.

"I've already got two suspects who I've got my agents looking into. They should be getting back to me in a few hours." I answered calmly. "I honestly might not even need to go." I said absentmindedly as I checked my scroll, which had buzzed. There was a message and a picture based on the description. The file that was sent was labeled 'Emerald Sustrai.'

Interesting.

But not relevant right now.

Turning my scroll off I turned back to Blake.

"I'll go with Sun so that at least he'll blend in." She decided. I looked at her for a second.

"Okay." I said finally. Blake nodded.

"Weiss. I'm gonna go run down this lead quickly but I'll meet you at the CCT when you're done. Remember, we meet back with Yang. Neptune, go with Yang. I don't think Juniors gonna be an issue but you never know with his men." I explained. Weiss was about ready to protest but I dragged her out.

"Weiss. I know he's cute but stay focused right now." I said. She stared at me that I had recognized her attraction before nodding seriously and walking out of the dorm.

"Let's go kids. Time's a wastin'" I said as I walked down the hall and down to the airships.

Running so fast I was a blur, I ran around the police station reading everything as fast I could about Tuckson's murder. There wasn't much to go on except that he was shot point blank by a large caliber dust bullet. The lights were off so the killer or killers must have known he was a faunus. The 'fang made it a rule never to out a faunus who can blend in unless they're traitors to the cause.

Except for Blake. Adam had kept her betrayal secret for some reason but I couldn't figure out why.

Running out of the police department I headed right for the bookstore.

There wasn't much there unfortunately since the crime scene had already been processed and well documented. Using my magic, I felt the aura trace, which was very faint, of anyone that had been in the bookstore.

Sorting through the detectives I found what I was looking for. Aura that matched the like of Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai. Gritting my teeth, I followed the very weak aura trace as far as I could, but only found myself in the massive warehouse district of Vale. It would take me days to sort through every aura trace so I decided I'd come back here later and speed through.

Running to the CCT was a chore honestly, and I was halfway there when I felt a familiarly peculiar aura. Looking to my right as I was running up the sidewalk, I saw Penny.

It had been bugging me how she had disappeared, so for the last few nights I had been searching the internet for who she was and hacking into Atlas' computer systems, seeing as her accent placed her near southern Atlas.

What I found was a whole lot of nothing. Penny did not exist. Anywhere. In any system.

What was strange though was that I found a reference to a file called 'Project P.E.N.N.Y' but it was so encrypted I couldn't get anywhere close without setting off any alarms.

Snapping back to reality, I stopped in front of the girl.

"Penny? Where have you been! You disappeared after the docks. Not even Professor Ozpin could find you." I exclaimed as I walked towards her. She heard me and turned in my direction before her eyes widened and she looked away.

"I'm sorry miss, but I think you're confused." She hiccuped. So her hiccups mean she's lying?

"Penny I know you're lying." It was mean, especially for someone who was as innocent as Penny, but I decided to take a bold risk. "I found the file." I murmured. Her head whipped towards me inhumanely fast as she grabbed my hand and pulled me down a side alley.

"How?" She questioned.

"That's not important. What is important is that I know you're okay." I said softly. She looked at me hesitantly.

"That sounds like something a friend would ask of a friend. Are you my friend, Ruby?" She asked hesitantly.

"Of course Penny." I said as I pulled her into a hug.

"Do you promise." She sounded so scared I was worried someone was hurting her. At this point I just wanted to know what was going on so I could help her. I nodded to her question.

She took a deep breath and looked me in the eye.

"I'm not a real girl…but you already knew that…how are you okay with this." She said. Not a real girl?

Wait a minute…real girl? Project P.E.N.N.Y?

Penny was some kind of Android.

"It doesn't matter to me if you have squishy guts and a beating heart servos and pistons. You have a soul. I feel it. You're as human as the rest of us." I said gently.

"Oh Ruby!" Penny said as she hugged me tightly. My back cracked a little.

"Too tight!" I grunted as she released me quickly.

"My apologies." She said shyly.

"It's okay Penny. These things happen sometimes." I said. Suddenly a voice echoed through the alleyway.

"Penny! Where'd you go!" Masculine, Atleasian.

"It's my guard!" Penny whispered in panic.

"Don't worry. Here, copy my scroll so we can keep in touch." I said as I handed her my scroll. Surprisingly she didn't pull out her own, instead just put it to her forehead. My scroll reacted and suddenly I had a new contact picture on the front.

"It comes in handy." Penny said as she handed my scroll back. I nodded.

"Go. I'll distract them while you figure out how to get out of here." She said as she began walking forward.

"Penny? Who were you talking to back there?" I heard the guard say as I jumped back and forth up the alley walls until I was on the roof. Penny looked up at me in surprise as she and the guard bebgan walking away. I waved and disappeared from her sight…or sensors, I guess.

Jumping across the rooftops, it was getting pretty late and Weiss was likely done by now and heading towards Yang. Deciding I had time, I headed to the recruitment meeting for the 'fang.

I didn't tell Blake, but one of my agents was their and told me the location ahead of time.

Taking off at a run, I headed towards the warehouse district.

 _Yang's POV_

Walking up to the club doors, the bouncers outside opened the doors for me and Neptune. Junior was already there waiting.

"Rose mentioned you'd be stopping by tonight. Blue over there has to wait somewhere else while we talk since she never mentioned another person." Junior said. I nodded and Neptune went to flirt with the twins.

"You're pretty paranoid tonight." I noted. He looked at me as we sat down at the bar and he made a drink for us.

"Yeah. 'Fang's got a meeting tonight. Wanted all kinds of information, but they must have realized I was only giving them the kind of information Rose pays me to give people. They threated all kinds of stuff but rose scares me more. Still, being paranoid has kept me in business this long." Junior said. I nodded.

"Speaking of, Rose wants to know what your men were hired for. The ones from the dust shop." I explained. Junior nodded.

"Well you're in luck. One of them is here tonight since Rose spared them." He said as he waved over one of his goons.

"Tell her what Torchwick hired you for." He ordered. The goon nodded.

"We were hired to steal dust. As much as we could carry. Torchwick said that we'd be helping the new revolution and we'd be set. If we had known Ms. Rose was gonna be at the shop, we never woulda taken that job." He said. I nodded.

"Okay. That's all we needed I guess. Rose might have more questions later. You know the drill." I shouted as I grabbed Neptunes jacket and dragged him out the bar.

"Give Rose my regards." Junior shouted as he held up his glass. I nodded and walked out the door with Neptune behind me. We got on my motorcycle and drove towards our rally point.

 _Ruby POV_

Peering into the window through my scope, I could see Torchwick grandstanding and making a big fuss about how he was helping the 'fang. I saw him locate Blake and Sun and then the power went out. From my rooftop across from the warehouse, I could see Blake and Sun jumping out the window followed by an Atlesian paladin.

Son of a bitch.

I was gonna give Ironwood a good tongue lashing when this was over. Did he decide not to tell Ozpin at least that one of his weapons was missing.

Jumping into action, I shot out two of the threat detection sensors giving Blake and Sun a little breathing room while they ran. Picking up crescent rose, I burst into rose petals and flew across warehouse rooftops, keeping up with the paladin as well as Blake and Sun. I took potshots every now and again, but the armor was thicker than my large caliber rounds could handle, and they just bounced off.

And then the real problem came when they jumped on the highway.

"Damnit you two! Take it off the road! Innocent people are getting hurt!" I shouted as I ran towards the paladin. Angling Crescent rose's blade inward more than it already was, I created a hook. Running as hard as I could, I jammed the blade into a sectional armor plate. Thanks to my velocity, I was able to pull the paladin off the highway and onto the ground below where we landed with a loud crash.

Groaning from the pain, I scrambled as Torchwick righted the metal monster and nearly stepped on me.

"Hang on Ruby!" Weiss shouted as she jumped down and planted her rapier in the ground and froze a large patch of it, causing the paladin to lose it's footing. Blake and Yang landed next to us and reloaded their weapons.

"We need to blind that thing even more. Freezerburn!" I shouted as Yang jumped up and we all backed off before she surrounded the entire area in steam.

Torchwick began taking potshots at us as we moved through the mist. Eventually he got lucky though when he hit Yang and Blake. Charging through the explosion, I took a swipe but backed off.

"Checkmate! Target the sensors!" I ordered. Blake and Weiss began targeting the firing sensors, causing most of the missiles to miss all around them, but never close. Weiss was still up in the air when Torchwick got a lucky break and shot his energy repulsors at her and sent Weiss flying.

"Ladybug!" I shouted as I zoomed past Blake who sprung into action. "Aim for the joints!" I shouted as we got closer. Blake and I's slashing allowed us to take off one of the paladins arms and it fell to the ground with a crash. Yang shot passed us using her gauntlets and began raining shots down on the armored shell, causing massive damage. Torchwick must have been desperate though because he ran straight for a support column to knock Yang off. As she was falling, he punched her with the remaining arm and sent her flying.

"Yang!" Blake shouted. I put and arm in front of her to stop her.

"Do it Yang!" I shouted across the battlefield. Thankfully Yang heard me. I knew she did when her hair burst into flames.

"That's her semblance activating. She'll destroy that thing in the rage she's in." I said lightly. Blake looked back at Yang hesitantly, no doubt remembering unpleasant things.

"Don't worry. She's nothing like him when she's angry. I taught her how to control that anger. Turn it into a sharp scalpel instead of a blunt instrument like Adam. She'll never lose control the way he did." I said gently. Blake's eyes softened and she nodded.

"Bumblebee!" I shouted. Blake immediately jumped up and through gambol shrouds ribbon towards Yang who grabbed hold. The paladin though was still fairly agile.

"Weiss, Iceflower!" I shouted again. Weiss' glyphs appeared as I leveled Crescent rose's barrel towards the Paladin's body. Taking the shot, it spiraled until it made contact with the paladin body and exploded into massive shards of ice, slowing it down. Yang gained some speed until she let go.

By the time we had finished, the paladin was destroyed and Torchwick was standing up a few yards away.

Yang took a shot with ember celica just as I felt a new aura getting close.

Right before the shot reached, a girl dressed in pink and white appeared with a parasol that managed to block Yang's shot.

"Ladies, Ice queen." Torchwick greeted. I barely heard Weiss' response as I was focusing on the new appearance. There was something…strange about her, familiar…but not.

"Always a pleasure." He saluted. "Neo, if you would." He said. she took a bow and I closed my eyes when I felt her aura flare as she used her semblance, but she was still here…

Suddenly I felt it move, along with Torchwicks weak aura. Not wanting him to get away, I whipped out crescent rose using my semblance. Now, this shot definitely wouldn't kill the new girl, but she'd feel it in the morning. I watched the bullet as my semblance faded and saw the shock on her face as the bullet exploded against her aura, nearly shattering. She bent over in shock as the bullhead flew away.

"What did you just do?" Weiss asked. Blake stared at me with curiosity.

"I used my aura to find her when she used her semblance." I explained calmly as I began walking towards the air fields.

"Don't you think that's a skill you should teach us?" Weiss asked. I shrugged.

"I've tried teaching Yang, as well as a few people years ago, but nobody can seem to get it so I figured why bother." I said as I shrugged again.

"That's a fair assumption but I'd still like to try." Weiss said. I studied her for a second.

"Alright. We can try." I said as I began walking again towards the air fields.

"Wait really?" I heard Weiss coming up behind me as Blake and Yang hung back and talked with each other.

"Seriously. We can try if you want. I'm curious if it's the person, the aura, or some other factor." I explained. Weiss nodded and we just talked about random things, history for a few minutes, and just life in general. It still felt weird just talking about life after years of isolation.

When we finally got back to beacon, I felt tired. Truly tired.

Too bad I had a little bit of 'Homework.'

"I'll catch up with you guys. I need to go talk with Ozpin. He sent me a message about 'team leader' stuff." I snorted to sell it. Yang nodded because she knew and easily handled Blake and Weiss.

Heading towards the clocktower, I pulled up the file I had been sent on Ms. Sustrai as well as what I'd been sent at some point during the fight about the other woman.

Walking into the office, Ozpin was already at his desk.

"I got good news and bad news. Which would you prefer?" I asked sarcastically as I sat down on the chair. Ozpin looked at me with weary eyes.

'I know the feeling' I thought to myself.

"Either one Ruby." He answered.

"Good news first…well…I guess it's how you look at it honestly. Anyways, my agents came through and found out the name of the other two people who attacked Terra." I explained. Ozpin just motioned for me to continue. I put my scroll on his desk with the files ready and they transferred to a hologram.

"This is Emerald Sustrai. She has the perception semblance. Master thief because of it and is fairly good at fighting." I explained. Ozpin nodded as he focused on the dark haired woman.

"This is Cinder Fall. She's the culprit behind Terra's attack. How she did it is unknown still but I suspect it's from a grimm." I said. Ozpin looked at me sharply.

"What do you mean?" He asked quickly.

"It's a species I ran into _once_. They drain the host of their life force. Like the Apathy grimm in a way. This one must have been changed by Salem though to work with the host and drain someone else's life." I concluded.

"Interesting theory, but how did you even come up with it?" He asked.

"The magic from my silver eyes is always on for the most part. Call it a sixth sense we have. Anyone with silver eyes can just _tell_ when grimm are close by. Like what I sensed when Ciinder was close by." I answered. Thinking back, I realized,

"I thought you said you've met with silver eyed warriors?" I asked. Ozpin nodded.

"Yes, but they are fairly secretive people and don't discuss their capabilities." He answered.

"what's the bad news?" He asked after a moment of thought.

"the bad news is, is that Cinder and her underlings are here. For what I can't tell but it's definitely not good. It either has something to do with the festival, since that's what she told me when I ran into Emerald by accident, or it's something far worse." I concluded darkly.

"Keep an eye out whenever you can. I'll do the same. In the meantime, go about your day." He ordered. Standing up out of habit to his order and dismissal, I began walking towards the elevator.

"Do get some rest Ruby. You look tired…like you've been toe to toe with a giant robot this evening, wouldn't you say. You'll need your rest since you have Glynda's class tomorrow." He smirked as I rolled my eyes at him.

"Will do old man, will do." I said playfully as the elevator doors opened.

"Oh by the way, Terra and Saphron will be here in a few days." He finished just as the doors closed.


	16. Chapter 16: For The Wicked

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Sixteen: …For The Wicked**

Watching Pyrrha destroy team CRDL was a thing of beauty. She fought with the grace and power of a lioness, the speed of a cheetah, and the clever thinking of a panther. She was constantly five to ten steps ahead of Cardin and the rest of his team. Any move they made was countered long before they even made it. She sparingly used her semblance, influencing CRDL's weapons and armor in subtle ways to sway the match, thus giving her the illusion of being untouchable.

When all was said and done, Pyrrha was standing upright while CRDL looked like they'd spent fifteen rounds with a goliath.

The lights came up in the arena and Glynda walked onto the stage.

"That's the match." She said as she climbed up. Cardin groaned something but I couldn't really hear it.

"Well done miss Nikos." Glynda praised. "You should have no problem qualifying for the tournament." She said. Pyrrha respectfully nodded.

"Thank you, professor." She said. Glynda nodded and looked to the class. We were sitting in front of Emerald and Mercury, something I had insisted upon quietly just in case they slipped up.

"Alright, I know that's a tough act to follow, but it would appear we have time for one more sparring match. Any Volunteers?" She asked the class. Immediately I saw her focus on Blake and knew what was coming.

"Miss Belladonna, You've been rather docile these last few classes. Why don't you-" She was about to say fight. Honestly I hoped she wouldn't have to. Blake had been maintaining herself poorly. Eating terribly, barely sleeping, and not focusing in class. It was rather worrying but it would end tomorrow if this continued. I promised myself that.

"I'll do it." I relaxed when Mercury volunteered but I was worried for the reason why. He didn't strike me as the type to just do something like this, and certainly not when he asked for Pyrrha.

He was trying to gauge her.

When I realized that, I knew what I had to do.

"I'll fight in Pyrrha's place. It wouldn't be right to let her fight after she already fought CRDL." I calmly reasoned. Glynda looked at me, and I side eyed Mercury as he communicated silently with Emerald. Mercury eventually decided that we would fight.

We both made it to the ring at the same time. I couldn't see any visible weapons, but my time as the demon and dealing with Atlesian assassins had taught me to never discount the possibility of unconventional weapons.

When Glynda called for the match to start, Mercury took off like a shot. When he Jumped in the air, I could see holes in the soles of his shoes and for a brief second, the glow of dust rounds.

Well I knew his weapons had to be like Yang's. Moderately effective at range, but devastatingly effective up close. Maybe he had a fighting style similar to Yang's but using his feet?

He made contact with the compact form of Crescent rose which I used as a shield and pushed him back. Unfurling my scythe into her full form, I planted the blade behind me while I held onto the polearm.

Whipping out the blade from the ground, I twisted towards him in a flurry of petals. Slashing up with the small blade at the far end of the pole, he deflected it easily but had to back off when the scythe blade slashed past his face. He launched back with a flurry of attacks but I defended easily by twisting my weapon end over end in a tornado of steel.

He let up for just a brief second and I kicked him in the chest twice using my semblance as I lowered my body and slashed at his legs. He flipped over the blade with a look of surprise on his face since that move had taken him by surprise.

"Hmm." He cocked his head to the side until his face got serious and he charged again.

Quickly I realized his fighting was a combination of powerful jumps and kicks that almost seemed to look like he was dancing at times. His jumps were powerful, lethal if they connected, but easily countered. When he got a fair bit of height, I used my full semblance and sped around him. He was completely helpless in the air since he couldn't fight gravity or physics.

He almost smashed into the far wall but I was already behind him and smashed him into the ground. His body left a small crater and his pants rode up slightly, allowing me to see his cybernetic ankle. He saw my brief distraction and tried kicking me but I reacted with my semblance and jumped over his kick. He flipped out of the crater and tried to get some distance, but It was pointless. Charging at him, he tried to get low to avoid having his head taken off, but I planned for that.

His aura was weak, typical of an assassin who's fighting style was to hit hard and fast. When my secret dagger, hidden in the small of my back broke his aura, he knew it.

"I yield." He grit through his teeth. I had never broken my aura and assumed it would take a lot, but I knew it was fairly painful.

Smirking, I offered a hand. He took it and I pulled him up roughly. Suddenly I had an evil thought.

"You and Emerald are fighting the wrong war." I said as I slipped a tracker in his pocket and I walked away. Mercury gaped like a fish when I looked back for a second before walking back to my team.

"That's all for today!" Glynda said as the bell sounded. "And remember the dance is this weekend but your first missions will be on Monday!" She reminded. Blake snapped out of a trance like state as Weiss and Yang moved.

That was concerning.

As we all left, Emerald was waiting by the door for Mercury.

I smirked as he just kept quiet.

We exited the main doors and began heading towards the dorms when Sun tried to ask Blake to the dance. She shut him down hard and walked away. Breathing through my nose, Weiss, Yang, and I all followed her back to the dorms.

When we were all inside I closed the door loudly.

"What was that back there?" I asked loudly. Blake actually looked at me with surprise.

"We have other things we need to focus on. not some stupid dance." She defended.

"That's goliath shit and you know it. So I'll ask you before I pull it out of your mind, what was that." I ordered this time as I got closer to her.

"Nobody else seems worried at all. The investigation has hit a dead end and we have nothing left to go on." She finally answered. Of course that's what this is about.

"Blake…Of course I'm worried. We all are. But if there's one thing I've learned, it's that you don't go blindly looking for the enemy. It's the fastest way to a short life. The enemy will make a mistake or something will turn up. I have agents everywhere, they'll find something." I said. She looked awful. Bags under her eyes and sluggish movements.

"Well they're not trying hard enough. I'm going to look over your papers some more." She said as she moved towards my desk. I slammed my hands down on them before she could react and threw my maps and papers on my bed.

"You can look at my papers after you've gotten some decent sleep." I said lowly. Blake tried to stare me down, but eventually gave up as she stormed out the door, slamming it behind her.

"Shit." I swore as I sat on the bed. This was a similar situation as when she came out as a faunus. I didn't want to push her to much too soon or else she'd slip away.

I managed to slip away myself when Weiss began planning the dance since team CVFY was on an extended mission and their leader, Coco, couldn't plan it.

Sneaking off to find Yang, since she had left promising that Blake would be at the dance with a laser pointer in hand, I found her dragging Blake into one of the empty classrooms.

 _Yang's POV_

"If you're going to tell me to stop, you might as well save your breath." Blake said firmly. I breathed in a calming breath like Ruby taught me to do.

"I'm not telling you to stop, I'm asking you to slow down. We can all see you're burning the candle at both ends and it's incredibly worrying. Ruby's not gonna go the distance like she does with me and Weiss because she's afraid she'll push you away if she does. I have no such problems." I said gently.

"I'm fine. Besides, we don't have the luxury of slowing down. Not while Torchwick and the 'fang are still working together." Blake said.

"It's not a luxury, Blake. It's a necessity." I said. something Ruby had told me years ago.

"The necessity is stopping Torchwick." She reminded me, as if I needed it.

"We'll stop him. Ruby knows what she's doing. Knows the advice she's giving you and the rest of us. Listen to it. Please." I asked her. "At the very least, listen to what I have to say." I patted the table in front of me. Thankfully she sat down.

"I grew up on patch. It's a little island just off the coast of Vale. Both my parents were hunters. But…I never knew my mother. She left before I was born. My mom and dad were on the same team with my uncle Qrow and a woman named Serenity Summers." I could see the surprise on Blakes face that my mom was not a part of my life at all.

"Ruby, or as she called herself at the time, summer, came along years back and I was eight if I remember correctly. She quickly became my big sister even though we weren't related. I met her because my dad took her in during a storm thinking she was a homeless teenager." I chuckled at the memory of her coming in the house for the first time soaking wet. I had Blake's full attention.

Good.

"Anyway, my mom left me right after I was born and nobody has seen her since then." I admitted as I got to my feet.

"Why did she leave you?" Blake asked softly.

"That one question…Why? When I was young, I wanted so much to know who my mother was, to know why she left. It was everything to me. I used to get angry when Ruby wouldn't tell me either, even though I knew my dad had told her. One day while I was going through my dads stuff because neither he nor Ruby were home, I found what I thought was a clue." I paused as the memory's came flooding back.

"I thought it could tell me where my mother was, or maybe even my mom herself. I was so excited I just ran out the door. I walked for hours and was covered in small cuts and bruises but I kept walking because I thought it would all be worth it. Nothing could stop me." I could practically hear the wind through the trees from that day.

"When I finally got there, I couldn't stand upright anymore. I didn't care though, because maybe my mom was here. As I looked at that beat up old shack it dawned on me. I wasn't alone, but not in the good way. Grimm were everywhere and their red eyes glowed in hunger. I thought I was going to die. Suddenly I was enveloped in this soft light and I could hear the grimm dying all around me." I don't know why I mentioned Ruby's silver eyed power, but it felt right.

"Suddenly Ruby was in front of me, tears in her eyes as she asked if I was okay. I was sobbing so hard from the fear of the grimm and shame for how badly I had scared Ruby that I couldn't even talk. When I calmed down enough to say I was fine she burst into tears. Telling me to never do something like that again until she grabbed hold of me and hugged me tightly."

"'Why did you do that?' She asked. And I had to tell her. She flicked me on the forehead and pulled me into another hug, apologizing over and over for not telling me or convincing my dad to tell me. She apologized over and over again for not getting to me sooner." I said. Blake had small tears in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you." She whispered.

"I didn't tell you that to make you feel bad. I told you that because there's two points you needed to hear. The first, is that it's okay to want answers, but when it becomes an obsession it can get you hurt or worse. The second point is that Ruby does the best she can for everybody. Yeah she's not perfect, but she does what she thinks is right. Her telling you that you need to rest comes from experience. She's told me plenty of stories of soldiers, trained soldiers, who could've cost them several key battles during the revolution who thought they were helping by spending hours on watch and neglecting themselves. She's told me a story about one man who hadn't slept in so long, he hallucinated that his comrade was the enemy and killed him." I explained. Ruby hadn't told me that story until I had stayed up for hours studying for a key test.

When I was finished, Blake looked me in the eyes and before she could react, I hugged her.

"I'm not telling you to stop Blake. I'm telling you to take it easy and rest. You're not good to anybody if you can't even keep your eyes open." I said softly as I separated the hug. Walking towards the stairs leading to the door.

"And if you fell like coming out to the dance tomorrow? I'll save you a dance." I threw a wink in and left. There was a single rose petal floating to the ground as I opened the door.

Smirking, I went back to the dorm.

 _Ruby POV_

Getting back to the dorm in less than five seconds, I found Weiss laying on the bed.

Not studying…or doing anything.

It was weird.

"Weiss? Everything okay?" I asked. She finally seemed to notice I was in the room.

"Can I be honest?" She asked hesitantly.

"Of course. It would help to know what's wrong if you're honest." I tried to joke. All Weiss managed was a weak smile.

"I tried to ask Neptune to the dance but…it didn't work out. I thought there was something there to work with between us but…" She admitted with a sigh. Right. Neptune was Weiss' little crush.

"Look. I've been around long enough to know that sometimes things just happen. Sometimes we see what we want to see and sometimes there's no reason that we'll understand behind other people's decisions." I said softly. Weiss looked at me in silence before she nodded.

"Thank you Ruby…I'm glad you became team leader." She said kindly. I gave her a side hug in thanks.

The night of the dance, Yang tried to force me into heels.

"Yeeeah. No." I said as I slipped on a pair of flats. "Be lucky I'm even wearing _these_." I said as I crossed my arms over my chest.

"Fine. I guess it's the best we can ask for." Yang sighed in defeat.

In truth, I was being very cautious and wanted to be as combat ready as possible. I had a bad feeling about tonight, and I learned never to ignore my instincts a long time ago.

Despite not having Crescent Rose, I still felt I could take down any opponent that might seek to cause harm.

The dance was nothing special in all honesty, and more than made me a little uncomfortable. Sure being in class with a dozen other people was one thing, but dozens of other people? That was a whole other beast. Ozpin stopped to talk to me for awhile.

"Not enjoying yourself?" He asked as he came up behind me.

"Not really, in all honesty. This…I don't know how to be like this…relaxed." I admitted. "Sure, I've been to dances before but…they're not really my thing. There's also a lot of painful memories and…this is too much."

Ozpin looked at me for a few seconds as he thought over his answer.

"You don't know how to relax, do you?" He asked calmly. I looked at him with squinted eyes.

"I made the battlefield my home. Fighting is the only way I know how to relax." I finally admitted. "Even in this peace I'm still waiting for the next battle, the next fight…I think I'm gonna go find Yang and tell her I'm calling it quits…maybe I'll go back to the dorm and read." I sighed as I started walking towards where I last saw Yang dancing with Blake.

When I found her I tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hey Yang, I'm gonna go. I'm not feeling it tonight." I said in a low voice as she stopped dancing with Blake for a second.

"Everything okay?" She asked with concern. I nodded and looked at her.

"Yeah. I'm just tired and this isn't my thing." I explained again. Yang studied me before she nodded slowly.

"Alright." She said hesitantly. I nodded as I began walking out of the dining hall.

I don't know why, but I decided to look back. Putting my hand on one of the pillars to the hall, I turned my head and saw Blake and Yang talking with Sun, Weiss and Neptune surprisingly just talking, JNPR was dancing fairly exclusively with each other, and I even saw Penny doing the robot.

This is what I'm fighting for…this is why I fight.

Slipping out into the cold, I was halfway back to the dorm when I saw a figure moving through the shadows, slipping up to the rooftops across from the dining hall.

Cinder.

Finally.

Hello relaxation.

Speeding all the way back to my dorm, I grabbed my combat outfit and changed as fast as I physically could. I pulled out my scroll and called my locker close to the CCT where I thought the figure was heading.

I was speeding through the courtyard when I realized that she might recognize me as a student. A silver eyed student no less.

Stopping right outside the CCT, I sighed as I opened the pocket dimension and pulled out my Nuckelavee mask.

Staring at it in my hands, I ran a thumb just under the right eye and cheek.

Wearing this mask outside of combat to hide my appearance from others like I had done in Argus, but in combat…it was another matter entirely.

Breathing through my nose, I placed the mask upon my face.

And Demon that should stay dead was reborn.


	17. Chapter 17: To Save A Soul

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Seventeen: To Save A Soul**

Stalking up the stairs of the CCT emergency stairwell, since using the elevator would give me away to anyone in the building, I used the barest of my silver eyed magic to find the intruder. I could use my maiden powers, but I wasn't sure how much power she actually had, and she might be able to sense me.

When I finally felt her power nudge against mine, I slipped through the emergency exit door. There was a job to be done and I was the only one capable of doing it.

She didn't seem to sense me as I slipped up into the rafters on the ceiling. I watched her as she pulled out a flash drive with a chess piece on it. I couldn't tell what it was but maybe I could find out later. Instead of downloading any files, she uploaded something, and the chess piece symbol appeared again but on the screen. This time I could see it. It looked like a queen piece, but I wasn't one hundred percent sure. I'd have to let her upload the full virus, that way I could get at the core coding and maybe see the design and what it's for.

Waiting for the upload to be mostly finished, I decided on my next move. I observed her as she talked to someone, presumably Emerald or Mercury, about something happening at the dance. Seeing a the upload was mostly finished, I jumped down quietly from my perch.

"The path you walk is a dark one, child." I said. She visibly startled before composing herself and turning towards me.

"What do you know of the path I walk." She said. I watched her falter at the sight of my mask. Her amber eyes almost glowed in the dim light, but that was only because her maiden powers were flaring.

"Using your powers is foolish, girl." I said as I flared my full power. This was a risky move. It could cause her to retreat, but I was willing to bet her pride and ego wouldn't allow for that.

When she noticed the orange flames shooting out of the empty eye sockets of my mask, her face hardened, and she got into a fighting stance.

Bingo.

"So be it." I growled as I pulled out the relic of destruction. It was a definite risk, using this blade. But it was an even greater risk that one of her teammates would have told her there was a scythe user and she'd recognize that I was a student. As far as she knew, I hoped, I was simply someone who worked with Ozpin and managed to track her down.

She charged at me and our dance began.

Forming a sword in each hand, she slashed at my chest and legs. I front flipped over her using my speed, careful not to use the full power of the relic, which used hatred and anger as the key to its power, as I slashed her shoulder open..

One of the key benefits of the blade, something no weapon since has been able to achieve, is that it completely ignores aura. It was something I discovered recently, which is funny that 'recently' was five hundred years ago.

Cinder stumbled in shock as the wound began to bleed sluggishly. It was obvious she was so confident in her skills that she thought she could beat almost any opponent. She was an admirable opponent. Competent and confident in her movements, that much I could immediately see.

But I wasn't just any opponent. She turned around as her aura began knitting the wound back together until it formed a faint scar. She looked at me and grit her teeth, her face contorting in anger. Growling, she charged again, and for her troubles, I slashed her ribs this time.

Most people don't know, but the ribs have bundles of nerves right under them that feel like fire if you nick them. She cried out in pain. I wasn't even really fighting with her at this point.

Until her maiden powers flared. Even at half strength, a Maiden who had a little bit of training was still dangerous. She floated in the air for a second as her power rose. I just stared at her unimpressed until she floated back down. I could feel her aura spiking as the Maiden magic boosted her natural aura.

"Are you done?" I asked unimpressed. She stared at me until I used my full semblance and sped in front of her, the flames of the empty eye sockets increasing in power.

A trained half maiden is still no match for a full maiden with centuries of training.

"This is not a game, child. Your mistress has deceived you. Promised the unattainable. If you quit now and return the powers you _stole,_ I'll let you live. But if you continue as you are you will regret it. I will make you watch as everything you have worked so hard for burns down around you. You will watch on in agony as your doomed empire crumbles to nothing and your dreams lay dead at your feet! You will barely be a footnote to history as I erase everything you are or ever will be from the pages of time. That's not a promise you _FOOLISH_ girl!" I shouted at her.

"It's a guarantee." I whispered darkly as I sped myself closer to her, punched her in the face and shattering her mask, and latched my hands on either side of her face. I had her frozen there with my power, but just as I began draining her powers by using my magic in a way I didn't think possible, the elevator door opened. Opening my mouth to shout at the person and tell them to leave, Cinder flared her weakened magic and burned my hands.

It wasn't anything I couldn't handle, but third degree burns hurt in the moment. Using the shock of my pain against me, she threw freeze dust in my face which blinded my sight and managed to escape. I followed her aura as she ran to the dance.

I would get her eventually. I made a promise after all.

On the plus side, I managed to take a small bit of her Maiden powers.

Turning to the person who interrupted, it turned out to be Ironwood.

"Damnit Ironwood! I almost had her!" I said loudly as he walked forward. I didn't want to deal with him now, so I began walking away, my cloak flaring out behind me dramatically.

I knew I'd have to deal with him later once Ozpin learned of tonight's events, but I was frustrated that she'd been able to get away when she did. Taking her maiden powers while she was alive guaranteed that I could return them to Terra. Sure, Cinder would likely be killed eventually, but I still wasn't sure what would happen to the powers if she did. Before I left, I grabbed the flash drive, since it probably still had a copy of the file on it and left the CCT by way of the window. Once I was down low enough from the tower, I burst into a ball of rose petals and flew towards the dorm window.

Landing perfectly as always, I moved towards the desk and sat down in the chair with a heavy sigh. Deciding I didn't really feel like dealing with the questions from Blake and Weiss, I went into vale on a late-night airship.

Walking into Juniors with rose petals behind me a few minutes later, I decided I was glad I practically paid everyone here. The bouncers let me in with no issue and Junior came to greet me as I sat down at the bar.

"Rough night?" He asked as he was cleaning up on the glasses. Sitting it down he poured me my usual; Whiskey on the rocks.

"Nope, the good stuff." I said in a low voice. There were somedays I really felt my age, and today was one of them…hell…the past few months were some of those days, I just happened to be feeling it tonight.

I'd been fighting people like Cinder for centuries…watched people like her. Killed them too. They all thought they were better than the rest and would follow anyone who could guarantee them power before wanting more.

They always wanted more.

It was in their nature. All it caused in the end though was a cycle of bloodshed and war and horrors beyond mortal comprehension that I can never forget. All it does is enable suffering and depravity of the soul and a rot that won't go away no matter how hard I try to forget and sometimes I just wish it would all STOP!

… Sometimes I think the atrocities I've witnessed at the hands of these people are burned into the backs of my eyelids…they never go away…no matter how much I tell myself or Yang that I've moved passed it all.

"That kinda day huh?" He said as he pulled out the absinthe fountain and two glasses. Junior wasn't the type to drink with customers, but he would always drink with me whenever I asked for absinthe. It was the only drink that could get me slightly drunk.

"Yup." I said as I began slowly drinking. Junior only had a small glass before he bowed out, but I finished three more until I felt buzzed. Junior stayed near me the entire time, keeping an eye on me. He was only like this when Yang was here, per my request, or when I was drinking absinthe, per Yang's request. He never said anything while I was drinking thankfully but made sure to keep the sugar cubes coming and the fountain full for whenever I had days like this. He might be on my payroll, but Junior was a good man at the very core of his being.

A few hours and seven glasses in, I finally decided I had had enough. I was slightly drunk, since I was being 'responsible' because we had a field trip tomorrow…today, and I knew Yang hated it when I came home smelling like alcohol. It made her worry about the future when she…wasn't around anymore.

That I'd turn into Qrow but worse.

Sighing, I headed back to the airfield at a slower pace, so I didn't trip over anything, and finally made it back to beacon an hour an a half later. There wasn't any point in trying to sneak in, since I knew Yang had likely waited up for me, and just walked in like I normally would. It surprised the hell out of me when I saw Yang sawing logs in her bunk, and Weiss was passed out in her bed. What I noticed after that, was the soft glowing eyes of one cat faunus.

"What are you still doing up?" I asked quietly so as not to disturb the sleeping beauties.

I laughed internally at my joke.

"Yang tried to force herself to stay awake for you, but she was exhausted from dancing, so I volunteered to make sure you got in okay." Blake explained softly. I nodded, knowing she could see me, and moved to change in the bathroom. Once that was done, I walked out and quietly hopped up into my bunk. I was about to attempt to sleep when I heard Blake whisper to me.

"Are you okay?" She sounded timid and for some reason it bothered me.

"I will be." I said honestly. There was no use lying. Besides, in my inebriated state, saying I was okay wasn't very believable. Blake took a small breath like she wanted to say something but seemed to think better of it. A whispered 'goodnight' was all that was spoken before I heard nothing else.

Curling up into my own body, I found myself alone in the darkness as I held myself. It was one of those rare nights where everything just came flooding in all at once. I found myself helpless to stop the onslaught of silent tears as they began silently flowing down my cheek, only to be absorbed into the pillow. In a really messed up way, I thought of the tears as all the people who have come and gone in my life, only to be claimed by time or some other factor.

Eventually, whether it was because of the drinking or just my thousand years of life catching up to me, I slipped into a very uneasy sleep.

 _Blakes POV_

It was as scary as it was sad hearing Ruby cry herself to sleep. Ruby had become this rock in my life, all our lives according to Weiss and Yang, ever since initiation. She'd taught us so much more than any teacher ever could in the time we've been at Beacon. I knew from the moment I looked at her that Ruby was different. She had an air about her that commanded authority, that made you want to follow her, that made you want to be the best teammate possible. She pushed all of us in the beginning between classes, tried to make us into a team before we ever really thought we could work. I know now she was trying to fit us into a mold we'd never truly fit, but once she realized that she changed her style of leading for us, helped us become a team to be respected amongst first years and even upper classman.

To hear her holding in this much pain was heartbreaking. I knew she had a lot of baggage from the moment I saw her, but I never realized it was this bad. She held it all in for us, became this rock for us, a teacher for us, but she didn't really have any of that. Knowing that she'd lived for a thousand years and seen all the things she had…

It broke my heart.

When she eventually fell asleep I was relieved. She'd could be at peace at least for the next few hours of sleep.

That was until she started having a fit.

The first one I remember her having started off much like this, as did the next one and the next one. Lately, she'd been doing better. Her fits weren't as severe, and she'd sometimes even come out of them on her own.

My only conclusion for why this one was becoming worse and worse by the minute was that something had happened, and whatever it was had to do with why she had coming in reeking of strong alcohol.

I was nervous as I slipped out of bed. Weiss had filled me in on what had happened when I'd run away before the battle at the docks.

Yang was fast asleep, and nothing except an explosion could wake her up as I had quickly learned early on. She could likely easily pull Ruby out of the nightmare, but I had already made my decision.

Easily slipping into the bed, I wrapped an arm over Ruby's struggling form. She tensed at first, clenching her fists tightly, until I started stroking her hair. It was soft, softer than Yang's surprisingly, and flowed like silk between my fingertips. She continued to struggle, lashing out at unseen demons, but not as violently as before. She muttered a few incoherent things here and there, mostly stuff about battles I assumed she was in, but finally she calmed down.

The way she burrowed into my front melted my heart. I pulled her in a bit tighter, remembering how Yang once offhandedly mentioned that heat was comforting to Ruby.

She let out a small sigh and relaxed even further as I continued stroking her hair.

When I felt she was calm enough, I tried to slip away and get back in my own bed, for fear of how she'd react if she woke up before me. I had managed to mostly get out of the situation I found myself in when I saw Ruby's face contort in agony and her body tensed up again. Wrapping myself around her quickly, she relaxed again, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

I was stuck here for the night it seemed.

And I was okay with that as I fell asleep myself.

 _Ruby's POV_

I knew I must've had a fit last night after I fell asleep when I felt arms around me. However, I knew right away that these arms didn't belong to Yang.

Also, the lack of her massive head of blonde hair gave it away as well.

Craning my neck, I saw black hair and cat ears.

What the hell happened?

I definitely don't remember being drunk enough for THAT to happen.

Doing a quick check, I noticed that both mine and Blake's night clothes were still on so that was a definite good sign. Another thing I immediately noticed is that I felt comfortable. Not like how I am with Yang, but…safe. It felt strange. Yang just held onto me like a bull at night, making sure I had an outlet in my sleep, so I didn't destroy the place I was sleeping in. It was a system that wasn't ideal, but it worked. Slipping out of Blake's hold as gently as possible, I left her on my bed and went to get showered.

When I was done in the bathroom, Blake was sitting up on my bed. The only problem was, Weiss and Yang were also awake, staring at her with an obvious question written on their faces. Yang, naturally, was the first to speak her mind.

"What are you doing in Ruby's bed?" She asked with a serious expression but a sly tone. Blake's cheeks burned red as she tried to stammer out a response. I decided to jump in.

"Leave it be, Yang. She did what she thought was best last night. There's nothing to talk about because nothing happened." I said as I dried my hair by shaking my whole head at insane speeds.

The topic seemed to be dropped, at least for now, as Yang and then Weiss, both got showered and dressed for the day.

"Do a double check on your packs before we have to go." I said absentmindedly as I got a message from Ozpin saying to meet him in his office for a debrief on last night. "I gotta go. Ozpin wants to see me." I headed for the door without another word.

 _Yang's POV_

"What really happened last night?" I asked seriously a few seconds after the door closed. Blake sighed. "Please just tell me. I can smell the absinthe on her clothes." I pleaded. I was worried. Ruby hadn't gone out in about a year now to drink. It used to be a more common occurrence. Something must've happened for that to change.

"I don't know. She came home inebriated but not super drunk. She changed into her night clothes and then just hopped up into her bed. She started crying pretty bad until she fell asleep and then she started having a fit. It got worse and I didn't know what I should do so I panicked and just laid down and wrapped her in a hug. She seemed to relax so I stayed there until she was fully calm. I tried to get back in my bed she started having a fit again…I decided I'd just stay there and sleep." Blake explained. Honestly it wasn't what I was expecting but not unsurprising. Ruby tended to be like that if she got drunk enough.

I was more concerned as to why she went out and got drunk. I'd have to talk to her later. There was a knock on the door which broke me out of my thoughts on how I should broach the conversation with Ruby. Opening the door, there was nothing but a cylindrical package outside the door. It was from Dad so there could be any number of things inside.

Seriously.

One time he managed to mail himself and a few suitcases in a box to Vacuo so he could meet up with his old partner Serenity and Uncle Qrow and help out a small village.

That was the week Ruby helped me begin to learn what my semblance could really do if I learned to control it.

When my thoughts strayed back to Ruby, my reminiscing mood took a dive and I had to sit on the bed. Putting my head in my right hand, I ran my left through my hair. Sighing deeply I took a few breaths to compose myself. Blake and Weiss noticed though and were sitting by me in an instant.

"What's wrong?" Weiss as softly.

"I don't know how to help her. Ruby has always been there for me. She basically became a mother, sister, and best friend at different points in my life. She helped raise me for a time, taking care of me when my dad had to work and I was too young to attend Signal academy. I know Ruby has problems. After everything she's seen, who wouldn't? The problem is that she doesn't really talk about them except to me…It's not enough." I lamented.

"She doesn't want to admit it but I've seen it…when she gets this distant look in her eyes during team spars…she's thinking about what'll happen when we're gone. It took me awhile to realize what that look meant, but I know, deep down, that she wishes she could die and be with her all her friends again." I couldn't help it as the sobbing began. Weiss and Blake were both sniffling, but I couldn't help it. I sobbed hard because Ruby means so much to me and to know she's hurting everyday is killing me because I know that there's nothing I can realistically do to help except be there for as long as I can.

When I felt like I could breathe again several minutes later, I sat up on the bed from where I had curled into Weiss' side, and checked over my pack like Ruby had told us to do. Sometimes the only way to move on was forward, and right now I had to move on.

 **A/N: So this was a bit of a heavier chapter. I'll admit, I had a really hard time time writing this one. I also debated heavily with myself if i should even finish writing this chapter when I got to the heavier parts. When I first began writing it, I thought it was gonna be an actiony chapter, but it progressed into something all on its own. I kept writing when i realized what I had started because I realized that while it's known that Ruby has nightmares, bad ones at that, I've neglected to put in anything else or how it effects the people around her. I based Yang's POV around how my mother described watching me as I struggled with depression before we really knew I had it.**

 **Anyways...I'm sorry if this wasnt what you were expecting but this is what _I_ felt was needed for this story when I started writing this chapter.**

 **Ummm...let me know what you think, I guess**

 **Take it Easy, I'll see you in the next chapter.**


	18. Chapter 18: Contents

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Eighteen: Contents**

The meeting with Ozpin to debrief last night was about what I expected. I gave him some of the information my team as well as agents had gathered, Ironwood typically thinking with his military rather than the efficiency and speed of a small team. Give me my team any day over a legion of Ironwoods best. While they weren't ready to take on small army's and completely win Weiss, Blake, and Yang could all do some serious damage.

Ironwood and Glynda gave there own details of what they could remember of Cinder, furthering the belief that she was up to something.

"My agents and the rest of RWBY managed to deduce that there was a base somewhere in the southeast, though I doubt they meant Vale." I mused as I thought over the information. My head shot up towards Ozpin.

"Bring up the map of Vale." I said. Ozpin nodded, realizing I was in a zone, and typed away at his keyboard until a map of the kingdom was brought up in a holo-projection. I walked up to it and began studying it. Nothing stood out as a hiding place in the southeast district.

"I thought you said they weren't likely to be in Vale?" Ironwood questioned.

"I did. But I'm ruling out the possibilities." There wasn't anywhere big enough in the southeastern part of Vale that could hide a large-scale operation like I suspected Cinder and the 'fang had. "Can you expand this." I asked as I kept looking, my eyes flying over every possible hiding spot. The map began to expand, and for a brief second, a location was tagged, but since it got smaller as the map got bigger, it disappeared quickly.

"Stop!" I said. immediately the map stopped zooming out. "There, zoom in on that area." I pointed to the rough spot where the name had popped up. The map began zooming in again until the name popped up.

"Mountain Glenn." I murmured. "That's it." I said with confidence. Ironwood and Glynda looked at me like I was crazy.

"Miss Rose. Mountain Glenn has been abandoned for years now. It's overrun by Grimm. Nobody in their right mind would occupy that area." Glynda said.

"That's exactly why it would make an excellent hiding spot." Ozpin spoke up. I nodded and he continued talking. "Mountain Glenn, if it were cleared of Grimm by a force large and competent enough, it could certainly act as a base of operations. Perfectly overlooked."

"I'll have it added to the field trip and team RWBY can take the mission." Ozpin said.

"I don't particularly like that I can't tell them everything that's going on." I muttered as I rolled my eyes. Ozpin looked at me calmly.

"It's for the best that they don't know what's happening in the bigger picture. They are still young. Let them hold onto their innocent beliefs a little longer." He explained. I sighed, this was an argument we have a lot.

"And I've told you. I may be immortal but I'm not like you. I never liked hoarding secrets that could get people hurt. Especially if there's time to prepare…" I took a breath to collect my thoughts. "We're getting off track. RWBY will take the mission, but I won't hesitate to use both of my magic's if things go bad." I said as I began walking towards the elevator. I heard Ozpin chuckle.

"I would expect nothing less." He said. I smirked as the elevator door opened and closed.

Sending off a quick message to my teammates asking if they had packed already, I headed back to the dorm.

Opening the door, the rest of my team looked like they were doing last minute packing, mostly just small toiletries and such.

"So, what happened? What did Ozpin want?" Weiss asked.

"It wasn't much really. Just team leader stuff." I lied quickly. It sucked that they weren't really allowed to know about Cinder. "Stuff I should expect for the field trips. It wasn't anything I hadn't already known, though." I said as I began checking my bag for the third time. One can never be too careful about forgetting things at my age.

Heh. Good one me.

I felt Yang staring at my back with critical eyes. Of course, she knew I was lying, just like how she knew about me drinking last night.

Because Yang Xia-long was not stupid.

"I also told him about stuff you and my agents have found. They know about the southeast and I overheard Ironwood talking about sending troops." I said as I finished my check. Yang put a hand on my shoulder in support. Weiss gave a me a look.

"Is that a good idea? That seems kinda risky." she asked as she crossed her arms.

"No. I think she handled it well." Blake voiced her support.

"Gods I hope so." I said as I rubbed the back of my neck.

"Dad sent us a package. Wanna open it together? Maybe it'll cheer you up." She said with a slight tone, trying to break the slight tension. I nodded and she walked over to wear the cylinder tube was waiting that I had noticed earlier. She shook it and a bunch of fur came out of it…and then it moved.

Popping out of the cylinder shape it was stuck in, the fur turned back into its original shape with legs. A black and white Corgi.

Zwei.

"Damnit Tai." I said with a laugh until he barked. Everyone had mixed reactions. Weiss just looked like she thought he was a mutt ready to attack, Yang and I were super excited.

And then there was Blake.

A dog and a cat faunus.

How could that possibly go wrong.

"He sent a dog!" Blake said

"In the mail?" Weiss finished.

"My dad does stuff like this all the time, he once mailed himself to Vacuo so he could help out a small village." Yang explained.

"I remember that! Your dad is so cheap I swear." I laughed deeply for what felt like the first time in years. Looking up, I saw Blake was staying up on the bed, far away from Zwei.

"Don't worry. I trained him myself. Friendly to all faunus." I explained with a proud smile. I had trained him since I found him as a puppy. He usually traveled between my hut and Tai's house, though he stayed with Tai whenever I was away. "He's even capable of hunting with a team. Trained him to listen for and alert anyone to the presence of Grimm." I said. Weiss looked impressed as she pet him all over and Blake just glared at him.

"Just keep him away from my stuff." She said as she slipped from the bed.

" _All first year students, please report to the amphitheater."_ Glynda said over the intercom.

"We can't leave him here for a week. I may have trained him to fight Grimm-" I was cut off as Yang tipped over the cardboard tube and poured out a _few weeks'_ worth of dog food. Pinching my nose, a can opener fell out last.

"As I was saying, I may have trained him to help fight Grimm, but I didn't train him to use a can opener. How foolish of me." I finished sarcastically. Yang read the letter that Tai had sent, explaining why Zwei was here.

"I completely forgot that he was going on a mission." I groaned as I through my head back. "Alright, whatever. We'll just have to take him with us." I said I grabbed another bag. When tai asked if he could try and train Zwei for whatever reason, I hadn't thought much of it. When Tai pulled my dog out of the smallest box he could find, I was pretty concerned for a moment. Now it's kinda useful.

Zwei jumped into the bag no problem and curled up easily enough. Closing the bag, we all headed towards the amphitheater.

When we finally got to the main gathering hall, team JNPR was already there.

It seemed Jaune was taking his leadership skills more seriously, as well as his training.

We stood in front of them, since it was the only room left.

As I looked at all the students representing their schools, I was reminded of why I was doing everything I was doing. These kids didn't have to worry about war, about never knowing if you were going to starve because the village hunter was incompetent and couldn't do anything. These kids were learning to be better, to do better. They would fight with everything they had because it was what they wanted to do. To give of themselves to something bigger.

It was why I was so proud, and scared, when Yang first expressed her desire to be a huntress…just like her older sister. I ignored Ozpins speech, as inspiring as it was, because I had heard all of what he was talking about before. Hell, I had lived through that history. Instead, I kept looking at the students gathered, idly noting that Cinder and her little followers were nowhere to be seen, reminding me in a different way of why I was fighting.

They threatened the tentative peace that has held since the end of the Faunus revolution.

When Ozpin was done his inspiring speech, he directed us to a selection board for missions. He subtly pointed towards the board that would allow us to volunteer for a search and destroy mission to Mountain Glenn.

Signing up for that with no problem, we headed to the airfield after picking up our bags.

"So who do you think is going to be the hunter for our mission?" Weiss asked. Everyone looked at me.

"Well don't look at me! I don't know _everything."_ I said with higher pitch too my voice. Yang shrugged and chuckled until someone shoved by her.

"Hey look! Team CFVY's back!" the boy said as he ran toward the courtyard.

Blake, Weiss, and Yang went right for Velvet, but I hung back for a bit. Velvet seemed kinda shaken up as she talked about the sheer number of Grimm during their mission. Hearing her talk about the number of Grimm seemed to cause a bit of worry amongst my teammates, so I moved to nip that in the butt.

"You three are young, but you show exceptional skill that many second year students barely come close to achieving. If you keep your wits about you, think carefully before proceeding into a situation, you'll be fine." I said as I began steering us towards the airfield.

"Oh boy." I said once I got sight of Bartholomew Oobleck. "I guarantee he's our hunter."

"Well hello girls! Who's ready to fight for their lives!" He said excitedly. I facepalmed.

What a great way to introduce three huntresses in training to working outside the kingdom.

Facepalming, I walked up to the bullhead and through my first pack in and gently placed the other pack containing Zwei next to it.

Despite my semblance, I had a hard time keeping up with _Doctor_ Ooblecks fast paced manner of speaking. Hell, the only reason I did so well in his history class was that I had lived it, not anything to do with note taking or listening to his speeches.

After a long-winded speech on the ground rules and a declaration that we were three minutes late, I tried to cheer everyone up.

"Despite how he seems, I've done my research on him. While he was an average hunter during his career before teaching, he was the second in command for his team. He knows what he's doing." I said confidently. Yang smiled and nodded, reassured by my words. Blake and Weiss seemed less so, but I was confident Oobleck would prove them wrong in time.

"Did you think you were gonna leave without saying goodbye!" a high pitched voice came from behind us. It was Nora, team JNPR's heavy support, and one of the few people who can match Yang's strength.

"Wouldn't dream of it." I said calmly. She went on a long rant but I tuned it out, as I mostly did during any conversation. I turned to Jaune when it seemed like Nora had completely lost her original train of thought.

"What will you be doing this week?" I asked. He shrugged.

"Working outside the kingdom walls, Nora and Ren wanted to shadow a sheriff but that's all I really know." He answered.

"You don't know where? I might know the sheriff." I said, a curious tone for everyone to hear. Pyrrha answered.

"Rosedale. It's not too far outside the walls."

Now that name brought back memories. It was a town I had accidentally founded not even a century after I was created. I was protecting a group of nomads from bandits and offhandedly mentioned they should stop being nomads and settle somewhere, build walls and huts to live in. Towns were far safer than nomads were back in those days.

"I know the place. Friend of mine still lives there actually. His name Onyx Night. Say hi to him for me?" I asked. Pyrrha smiled and nodded. "Thanks." Neptune and Sun walked up at that moment.

"You know…where's the rest of your team?" Blake asked.

"Supposedly, Sage and Scarlet are on their way from the coast after a mix up back in Vacuo harbor." Neptune answered with a roll of his eyes. I smirked gave a small chuckle, leave it to one of Sage's grandsons, this one named after her, to inherit her ability to get _something_ mixed up.

Suddenly form behind us, Oobleck called out that we were now four minutes late, and I heard the jet engines from our bullhead begin their takeoff sequences.

"We better get going." I said as I began walking towards the bullhead, a quick goodbye to half of team SSSN and all of JNPR. I heard the rest of my team saying their goodbyes, and we were off to Mountain Glenn.

Mountain Glenn…not a place I thought I'd be returning too.

A job's a job though, so I shoved those memories out of my head and held onto the support as we took off. When we were nearing the wall, I heard my team try and strike up conversation with Oobleck, but I wasn't interested. I knew why he became a huntsman, and why he chose to stop and be a teacher. I knew he thought he could do more by teaching from his own failures as well as histories, all of those things he expressed to Yang, Weiss, and Blake while I watching our destination loom closer.

All too soon we were landing outside the destroyed wall, a hole the size of a fully-grown goliath greeted us. Stepping through slowly, I scouted out the area by jumping up to the destroyed support beams of a defunct building. Pulling out crescent rose, I increased the zoom form four to six and tracked several packs of young beowolves that were running away from us.

Odd.

That number of young grimm _should_ be coming straight for us…but they weren't. Which meant there was an easier meal nearby. Growling to myself, I spotted several more packs heading in the same direction.

Someone else was here, and I only had one guess as to who.

This all but confirmed mine and Ozpins theory.

I helped unload our stuff from the bullhead before it took off and set it in a pile as Oobleck instructed.

"As huntresses, you will often times be without many essentials, this will be a good learning experience." He explained. Oh well, at least the rest of the team would learn something new on this trip, though I would try and learn something as well.

Reaching out with my magic to make sure our landing area was secure in case I missed any Grimm, I could feel a small pack nearby, and while my team knew that I could do incredible things, Oobleck did not. I had to pretend like I was ignorant of the pack as one of them came around the corner, Oobleck giving a lesson on tracking a pack. He was suddenly, and quite funnily interrupted, when the rest of the pack came around the corner just as he was saying that some Grimm could be away from packs for weeks.

The pack spotted us, whether because of me and my constantly shifting mood with enough negativity to feed several goliaths, or Ooblecks rapid and loud speech. Either way, they charged at us, and I was proud when my team tore them apart like it was nothing.

Yang, like I had trained her too, mostly kept close. It used to be a dangerous habit until she finally learned not to get far away during a fight against multiple Grimm.

Not only was charging headfirst into battle, away from your partner, stupid and reckless, if you got separated from each other and one of you needed help, the other could get seriously hurt.

Needless to say, I was proud of them. They didn't panic or do anything reckless, nor did they stray to far or try to play hero.

"Excellent job!" Oobleck praised "But don't get excited or overconfident, for I am certain that this is the first bout of many!" He exclaimed.

What followed was hours of hardwork, a lot of me pretending I was getting tired, and my team destroying a half dozen packs of Beowolves and several Ursai.

I was about to make a snide comment several times when I saw Oobleck carelessly putting himself in combat zones and collecting samples. While I could easily work around him, I saw everyone else struggling as he moved around.

Yang ended up beating me to it, her temper finally strained enough to comment, saying she had looked forward to seeing a pro huntsman in action.

He answered of course, saying that he was in action already by scouring the ruins, and reminding the three young huntresses that not every job is fraught with danger and excitement, rather a heightened form of extermination.

Eventually he started seeking them out individually, and I watched carefully from the shadows as they gave their answers, none of which were unexpected but completely unique to each person.

I expected him to seek me out eventually and smiled slightly as I heard him approach behind me as the girls set up camp. I was watching the goliath herd when he spoke.

"Amazing creatures, are they not?" he asked slowly, which I didn't think he could do.

"Yes. I wonder how old they are?" I said as one looked at me. From what I could tell, about six hundred years old.

"It's hard to say, but they are old, given their reaction, or lack of one, to us." He answered. I looked at him for a brief second.

"Would you still be interested in history if you were as old as they are, if you had seen the things they have likely seen?" I asked quietly. Oobleck seemed to study me for a moment.

"It's hard to say. On the one hand, some things are better left for the history books, others…should be ashes spread to the wind, forgotten by everyone." He answered slowly. I nodded, humming as my only response.

"What made you want to be a huntsman?" I asked out of the blue.

"Look around and tell me what you see." He asked loudly, pointing at the ruins around us.

"Destruction, death, potential and failure." I answered darkly. Oobleck looked at me in surprise, not thinking I'd give an answer like that. He adjusted his glasses.

"I see the lives that could've been saved." He said as he began walking through the derelict street. "It's my job as a hunter to protect the people, and I believe I can do it by teaching the future generations, something I believe is what is the most important." He said as we came up to the small fire of our little camp. I heard the girls talking but couldn't really hear what they said. It sounded like they were talking about the question Oobleck had asked them. It always amazed me how so many people and great ideas were either created or undone by one simple question.

Why?

Why do we do the things we do?

Such a simple question, but the answer is so much more complicated.

"Did Oobleck ask you why you wanted to be a huntress?" Yang asked as I moved to the fire and he moved off to a quiet spot.

"No, but I can tell you why if you want." I answered. They all seemed down, questioning themselves and their motives. They all nodded eagerly and sat around the fire.

"Well for one, there wasn't much to do back then. It was either be a bandit, slaver, trader, or roamer. A hunter wasn't an official concept at that time…but I became one because it was right. The world needed protection and I could give it, so I did." I answered simply. "It felt selfish of me, an immortal with gifts beyond understanding at the time, to simply do nothing."

The girls nodded at my answer, relaxing.

Hopefully it helped them.

Standing up, I looked at them and spoke.

"Get some sleep. I'll be on watch tonight."

Blake looked like she would object, but Yang stopped her. She nodded slowly and they all got ready before drifting off.

"Tomorrow will hopefully be better." I murmured as I


	19. Chapter 19: Under Pressure

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Nineteen: Under Pressure**

Closing my eyes, I got into a meditative position and stretched out my magic as far as it could go, feeling the Grimm in the area from atop a pillar a goof fifteen feet above where my teammates were supposedly sleeping. It sure as hell beat staring through my scope all night. Thankfully, when my three teammates, who were most definitely not asleep even though they pretended they were, began talking, I was good enough that it didn't disturb me. I was able to listen to them and keep my magic in a wide area around me. They talked about why they became huntresses, explaining their answers to each other.

I smiled at their more honest answers. It was good hearing them admit the truth to each other, it was healthy for a team to be open. It improved communication and trust in even the darkest times.

I smiled proudly when I heard Weiss' declaration of putting everyone and everything else second. Such was the burden of huntresses and hunters everywhere, the exceptional one's anyway.

When Zwei nudged me, breaking me out of my meditation, I knew why.

He hadn't peed in a while.

Standing up, I patted my thigh for him to follow and he did. I nudged my boot into Yang's thigh. She opened her eyes immediately and sat up. I put a hand to my lips for her too keep quiet.

"I'm gonna take Zwei down to pee. Keep watch. There's two Beowolves about a half mile from here but other than that nothing much. I shouldn't be long but if I'm not back in fifteen minutes, assume _something_ has happened." I ordered. She nodded and I went to take Zwei down the old broken steps. Once we were finally on the ground, I cursed internally at a dog's natural tendency to sniff EVERYTHING before peeing.

We walked for a few minutes, further and further away form the group. I checked my scroll, watching as the bars slowly got worse and the connections began getting worse. Sighing, I urged Zwei mentally to hurry up. Even though I was immortal, literally anything could happen.

Like two members of the 'fang just showing up.

Wow that's unfortunate for them.

Bolting to one of the rooftops with Zwei so they didn't see me, I listened as hard as I could. It was useless anyway, since they didn't give up any useful information, but I decided they could be useful in another way.

Leading me to the entrance of their base.

Hopping across old rooftops and crumbling stone towers, I trailed them for a few hundred feet until they slipped into a small maintenance facility.

Bingo.

Unfortunately , them being under the ruined city provided a whole host of new problems.

I looked at my scroll again, but I was far away from the others, and therefore I had two options. Go in alone or go back and get the team.

I made my decision and decided to get the team so we could fight together, if it came to that.

Unfortunately, life had other plans, as the concrete below my feet broke apart. I used my speed semblance and got out of there before Zwei or I could fall in.

Sadly, there was the possibility it had ruined the element of surprise.

"Damnit." I grumbled. Turning to Zwei, I ordered him to go get the girls and Oobleck, knowing full well he would understand. He barked and ran off as fast as his fat little legs could carry him. I snorted at the sight before regaining my composure. Sighing, I slipped on my Demon mask and brought my hood up, slipping off the edge of the hole and into darkness.

As my eyes adjusted, I saw many old buildings surrounded by cave walls. It was a huge cavern, but it was also a tomb, as I saw dozens of decaying bodies huddled together, some torn apart.

"I did the best I could for them. Get it together Ruby." I said to myself quietly as I passed by the bodies. This was one of the few things I didn't blame myself terribly for. There was nothing I could've done to help these people, they were doomed since the Idea of Mountain Glenn became a reality, no matter how much I warned the high council of it's dangers. When I took to warning the civilians, I was still ignored.

I made peace with it a long time ago.

Yang was always confused. Why did events like the battle of Fort castle or the siege of vacuo affect me more than the things I witnessed here at Mountain Glenn.

The truth is…I don't know. Maybe it's because I recognize that there was nothing I could do to save these people, that everything I did do saved hundreds of lives. Maybe it was because on some level, I knew these people were doomed from the start, and that I did everything I could for them.

"I did the best I could." I repeated as I past more bodies, Whether I was trying to convince myself or them, I didn't know. My cloak billowed behind me as I stalked through the shadows like a wraith. I came upon two soldiers and took a deep breath.

They didn't even know what hit them before they dropped to the ground.

Jumping up on an old rooftop, I pushed myself flush against the wall as several small rocks fell over the edge and clattered on the ground. I held my breath as a few grunts came over to inspect it. I moved quickly when they dismissed the noise as nothing more than the wind.

Thank the gods for their lack of investigative skills.

I haven't felt a breeze since I got down here!

Moving along, I stopped as the cavern began shaking, an explosion echoing, and I had to dodge a falling stalactite. Being impaled isn't as fun or cool as the movies make it out to be.

I crouched low and kept quiet, my dagger clutched in my hand once free of its sheath. Ducking under some fallen support beams, I scurried up one onto a perch where I could see better. I saw a cloud of dirt and dust a few dozen yards north of my position. I was about to move when I spotted one very angry human.

Roman Torchwick. He began shouting at his men.

"Are you animals _trying_ to cause a cave in! Are you _trying_ to get our activities noticed! Because if so, that last charge nearly accomplished BOTH!" He ranted as he swung his cane back and forth.

"Asshole." I muttered under my breath as I moved through the rubble that had fallen from the roof of the cave. Finding another observation point, I perched on the corner of yet another old building and watched as the 'fang began placing explosives in a sort of orderly way, before detonating and clearing the rubble, revealing a tunnel with train tracks running down it. There was a train, which I could see had more explosives and several Atlas Paladin's.

Seriously, Ironwood.

What were they doing though?

Another explosion rang out, along with gunfire, and Roman went to see what the problem was. I could see my team and Oobleck running into the cave guns blazing. I had to tell them what was happening.

Hooking around behind Torchwick's group, I sprang up behind him and pulled his cap down on his head before running towards my team. I heard a bullet whiz past my ear as I got closer to Yang.

"Ruby! Are you okay?" I pulled away to give her a look. "Right stupid question." She said as we hugged again.

"Listen. This situation just got a lot more complicated. Torchwick and the 'fang have been stockpiling a lot of weapons and explosives. I'm talking paladins, rocket launchers, guns, ammo, and plenty of explosives. All of it ready to be shipped out on trains." I explained quickly as I opened Crescent rose to shoot back.

"That's preposterous! These tunnels are sealed. The tracks lead to a dead end." Oobleck declared. I froze.

"Where's the end…Oh gods." I looked back at the tracks. I recognized them. I ought to after I ran down the tunnel so fast to get here to help evacuate the civilians.

" _Go! Run down the tunnels I'll cover you!"_ seemed to echo before I shook it free from my memory.

"At the end of that tunnel is a seal that runs right under the walls!" I shouted as I began picking off grunts with less-lethal rounds, shattering their aura's. I heard my team and Oobleck following after me as I ran for the train, the intercom buzzing saying that it was time to go.

"Damnit." I cursed as the train began leaving the station.

"There's no time to call for back up and even if we could the signal wouldn't make it. We have to stop that train ourselves." I ordered as it began picking up speed. We ran for it as hard as we could, making it onto the caboose at the last second before it picked up even more speed.

"Let's get inside, It'll be easier not having to dodge the roof support structure!" I shouted over the wind. I moved to open a hatch and swore viciously.

A bomb was sitting in the car.

"We really gotta stop this train. It's loaded with armed explosives!" I shouted as I moved to another three cars, all loaded with bombs. I finally realized the true plan when the caboose decoupled before anyone could do anything and exploded a hundred feet back.

Grimm poured into the hole made by the explosion.

They were leading the Grimm right to the heart of Vale!

"You three, go down below and try disarm the bombs. Weiss! Try and Freeze it. I couldn't get a good look at the battery, but most lose power in extreme cold!" I shouted she nodded, and my teammates jumped into the cars while Oobleck and I remained on top, thankfully we also had Zwei.

 _Yang POV_

Jumping down below, there was no one I could see, but my instincts were screaming at me that we weren't alone. Ruby always told me to trust my instincts.

"We need to be careful. There's no way it was just Torchwick leading this operation." I spoke. Weiss handed one of her spare speed reloaders to Blake, who loaded it into her empty gun.

"Knowing the 'fang, one of their lieutenants is likely overseeing this as well." She said. We all nodded and crept forward. All of a sudden, the small girl from the overpass appeared out of knowhere. Gods, sometimes I really wish I had been able to learn Ruby's aura sensing technique. So far only Weiss had shown a tiny bit of progress.

"Go. I got this." I said as I loaded Ember Celica. Weiss and Blake charged on ahead.

"You know, I'm genuinely curious how this fight's gonna turn out." I said as Blake and Weiss disappeared around the corner.

The girl simply smirked, resting her umbrella on her shoulder.

I walked straight up to her, sizing her up. She wasn't physically strong looking, so that meant she was likely fast. Her weapon, which upon closer inspection was what Ruby had called a Parasol, was probably sturdy enough for defense and offense. From what I remembered of Ruby's description of her semblance, it was a kind of illusion. Powerful, but left the user weak for a brief second, as using a semblance on someone else's mind was incredibly draining. She had a confidence to her, which spoke of years of training. I made up my mind about how to fight her.

I'd have to fight dirty, going high and low as randomly as I could to throw her off. That, or try to wrestle her weapon away from her.

Throwing a haymaker to gauge her reaction speed, I parried her weapon quickly when she swung down to attack near my stomach. She was surprised I had reacted so fast, and I used it to get in another attack. She was on the defensive, opening her parasol at key times to try and confuse me. It worked every now and again, allowing her to slowly chip away at my aura.

I threw a flurry of punches, which she mostly blocked, which was frustrating, but I refused to let my semblance get the best of me. Right as I went for a punch to her side, she flicked her leg up, intent on slamming her foot into my face. At the last possible second, I managed to get my hand up and squeezing around her ankle. She looked at me in shock.

Sometimes it pays to have a sparring partner whose semblance is speed, primarily using her legs.

Holding on tight, I picked her and threw her into the floor, whipping her around like a doll. The impact bent the metal floor, and she winced in pain. While I was still holding onto her leg, preventing her from moving and keeping me in physical contact with her, which was another counter to an illusionist, I fired Ember over and over again at her middle. She took everything until I had to reload. Right as I was about to fire the first shot from my gauntlets when her parasol opened up right against the barrel, causing the shell to explode in my face.

When I got up, she was looking at her weapon with a very pissed off expression.

The close range shot of the shell and subsequent explosion had caused a tear. A rather large one at that. If this girl was anything like Ruby, I was in for a world of hurt.

She charged at me, faster than she had before, and at the last second whipped out a hidden blade. I felt it catch on my right arm, which my aura healed instantly, but left a faint scar. She had this angry look on her face as she gestured to her weapon.

Not feeling in the mood to talk, I charged at her again, only this time she flipped over me and kicked me in the back. Hard. I was sent flying to the other wall, where I hit face first and bounced off.

She came charging me, so I did the same. At the last second however, she wrapped her small arms around mine, and with incredible flexibility, kicked me in the face. I saw stars for a second. She used that to her advantage and unleashed a flurry of kicks and punches. I tried retaliating, but it seemed like she had sped up.

Suddenly I was flying through the air, until I met the roof of the train car, and suddenly I was falling. I landed square on my head and bounced off. I heard the girl breathing heavily, panting through her nose. I'd like to think it was because I put up a decent fight. I felt her boot in my back, metal scraping on metal which I assumed was her blade on the floor of the train car.

Gods I hope Ruby sensed that my aura was low. I heard a whooshing sound, and a swirling pool of red opened up in the middle of the train car. I squinted at it as someone stepped through, crowned in a white mask not too dissimilar from Ruby's. What really told me who this was, was the sword and clothes.

Mom?

The small girl backed away in fear, and I swear both her eyes went white. My mom unsheathed her absurdly long blade, and the girl disappeared in a flash.

 _Ruby's POV_

"Oh hell no." I muttered as soon as I felt a maiden get near me out of nowhere. I knew exactly who it was the moment I was able to recognize the aura and maiden power.

Spring.

Raven.

"Doctor! My sister's hurt. Are you good!" I shouted over the wind. Oobleck nodded and I zipped into the train car, just in time to see Raven step into the portal. Yang was on the ground, struggling to get up. I helped her up, and she looked at me with eyes that radiated anger. I knew it wasn't for me though, as she continued to stare at the spot where her mother had disappeared from.

"Later. Right now, Weiss and Blake need help." I told her. She snapped out of it at the mention of our teammates and we both rushed through the door.

The fight was over fortunately, and Weiss and Blake weren't seriously hurt.

"This train isn't going to stop." Weiss said as she noticed that the manual brake was broken in half, likely on purpose.

"I know. I don't know what else to do though." I said. Weiss just smirked and jumped up to the roof, the rest of us following her.

"Hold on!" She shouted as the barrier got closer. We were surrounded in ice and several of Weiss gravity glyphs.

"Good thinking!" I shouted just as the train impacted the wall. We were flung through it, along with the train.

Someone needed to make that gods awful ringing stop. It hurt so much that I clapped my hands over my ears and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to will the alarm that was going off to stop.

I heard someone calling my name, but it felt like through lairs of cotton that had been stuffed in my ears.

The ringing lessened after several seconds, and I opened my eyes.

Oh gods. We were in the middle of downtown Vale, and civilians were everywhere!

A rumbling noise began, slow and steady until it hit a crescendo and a King Taijitu burst out of the ground, followed by hundreds of beowolves, creeps, small nevermores, deathstalkers, and ursai.

Oh gods. So many Grimm, only three huntresses in training, one official hunter, and one immortal. Civilians were already being chased and it was too late. People were getting hurt and a few had already been killed.

Standing up, I began breathing slowly, feeling my power begin to burn in my eyes. A hand on my shoulder broke me out of my concentration though. I opened my eyes angrily, only to see Yang shaking her head.

"If you do this now, you won't be able to hide peacefully for another hundred and fifty years. Ruby Rose will have to die sooner. She will hunt you down ruthlessly all over again. I know how much this is hurting you, but it's not worth the risk right now. Use your maiden powers, but please, hold off on the silver eyes."

I can't do that, was what I was about to say when multiple auras began closing in.

The battle began quickly, Grimm attacking form every angle. I was just about to swipe the black head off the King Taijitu when a hammer wielding huntress beat me too it.

"Nora Smash!" She cried as she slammed her hammer into the giant snakes head, an explosion going off and killing the beast.

I saw Jaune take down an Ursai by himself, so that was cool. When the beast fell, Sun and Neptune were behind it.

"Nobody move, junior det-" I cut Sun off as I zipped behind them.

"Not the time!" I shouted as I ran passed them and slashed two beowolves in half. They jumped in surprise before getting to work. Or they would've until they began gawking at the massive Atleasian warship flying over-head.

Team CFVY joined in, along with Cinders team though I suspected it was just to maintain cover. It was a shame, watching emerald and mercury fight. They held such promise for being good huntsman.

It was pretty hot when Coco whipped out her minigun and just blasted away all the grimm from our area.

Snapping myself out of it, I focused my senses and found more grimm in the area.

"Lock down this area, start creating safe zones for civilians!" I ordered as I sped away, confident my team would fulfill my orders.

I tracked Cinders movements as she walked away from the fight. I knew she sensed the small pack behind her, but I had a plan for that.

Jumping down about fifty feet behind the pack, I angled my scythe and ran hard, decapitating the beowolves before they even knew I was there. I saw Cinder turn around and I stopped just in time, my blade an inch from her neck.

I sped off without another word as I felt her powers flare slightly.

A half hour later saw everyone, including Emerald and Mercury, celebrating a job well done, though I was very on edge with Emerald and Mercury so close acting chummy.

We talked on the roof at Beacon once we returned. After that, it was bedtime…

Almost.

"Get some sleep. Ozpin just texted me." I said as I had my hand on the door.

"You know…I talked to the other leaders. They don't get texts even half as much from Ozpin." Blake said. Always to curious for her own good.

Wasn't there a saying about that?

"Ozpins been helping me with academic stuff." I said. Blake seemed to drop the topic easily enough, which only meant she was gonna dig more, and I left.

When I got into the office I was surprised.

"Hey Ruby!" Saphron shouted as Terra bounced a baby on her hip.

"Oh Gods you're here!" I shouted joyfully as I ran over to them, wrapping them in a hug.


	20. Chapter 20: A Good Fight

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Twenty: A good fight**

With the tournament officially beginning in a few days, I decided I had some time to do something that needed to be done. Sure, hanging out with Saphron and Terra and their little munchkin was awesome, but something had been bothering me.

A little bird.

After informing my team to keep training, and that I'd be gone until the tournament, I left with very little protest. Running hard, I headed for a port.

Hopping on a boat and getting off in Mistral, I headed to the forest in the unclaimed territories. When I was far enough away from the train station, I activated my maiden powers, letting me track my prey. Thankfully she wasn't to far as I sped off, maybe about twenty miles or so. While I was running, I put my hood up and Demon mask on, much like I knew she would be wearing her own mask.

Appearing outside the wall to the Branwen tribe, a guard came out to greet me, attempt to steal from me, or try and kill me. I honestly was never sure with these people. When he was close enough to see the flaming eye sockets of my mask, he froze in his tracks.

"Bring her to me." I said simply. He scrambled through the gate as fast as possible, tripping over his feet several times. I heard a scream from inside several seconds later, and then She was in front of me.

"You know _damn_ well I'm not here for you Vernal." I hissed, venom practically dripping from between my teeth. She was at least a little scared of me.

Good.

"We both know why you're really here." The voice of my true target spoke.

"Get your ass out here Raven, before I fry you just on principle." I spat. She showed herself, the guard from earlier following behind her with a bloody nose.

"Explain to me…why you come here and have the nerve to order my tribe around." She said.

"Because they know who they truly have to be afraid of Raven." I grit. "What the hell is wrong with you anyway?" I asked angrily.

"I saved my daughters life!" Raven snarled.

"All you did was dig up painful memories and tear open old wounds. I could've just as easily been there to help her. You only did it to tell yourself you ever actually cared for her. If I know you, and I know you very well, you'll say you'll never have to intervene in her fights ever again. That that was your one good deed." I said.

How dare Raven dact like this was no big deal. How dare she rescue Yang and then act like it never meant anything, like Yang never meant anything. How dare she treat Vernal like a daughter…Especially after what happened with Sarah

"I was doing what any mother would do." She said loudly.

"Well congratulations! You're now one for a hundred seventy-five. Certainly better than the big fat Zero you were sitting at! Real mom of the year material!" I shot back at her. I saw her flinch, ever so slightly under her mask.

"I saved her life!" She shouted in anger.

"Don't tell me you abandoned her and call it love." I said softly as I walked closer.

"You and I both know why I had to leave." She said, it almost sounded like it had a twinge of regret for just a second. This was a mistake coming here, it's like talking to a brick wall that goes in circles. Turning away, I spoke.

"Stick to our deal Raven. I let your tribe run around and steal things without killing innocent people so long as you never leave the Kingdoms borders." I reminded her as I began walking away. "I know you think you're being a mother, but you seriously suck at it. Oh, and if I ever hear you using your maiden powers like I did from one of my agents who was in that town, Kivona, I'll take your power too.

"You won't." She challenged. In answer, I held up my palm and produced the small bit of power I had taken from Cinder.

"This is from the half maiden. If you come anywhere outside Mistral, I'll take your stolen powers and find someone better." I said as I sped off. I didn't even need to look back to feel her powers flare in anger and sadness.

Hopping back on the train, I headed back to beacon in time for the tournament.

"Good. You made it. We're fighting team ABRN as the opener." Weiss explained.

"It'll be a good warmup fight then." I said with a smile.

It was totally a good warmup fight. ABRN fought hard, but our team was better balanced then theirs. Not to toot my own horn, but it also helped that I can literally speed through the enemies ranks.

"I'll meet up with you guys later. Oh! Remember the plan, if anyone asks who's going on to the duos, it's Weiss and Yang." I remided.

"We know!" They chorused. I smiled and zipped off to the carnival to meet up with Terra and Saphron. Thankfully I was able to find a babysitter for them so we could hang out and I could officially return a small portion of Terra's maiden powers.

The festival grounds smelled lovely as I got there, hot cakes, noodles, fish, fried foods. All lovely smells to my grumbling stomach.

When I spotted a blonde holding a brunettes I ran over and wrapped them in a hug.

"Thanks for coming." I grinned. Saphron looked at me.

"Anytime Ruby." She said fondly. Terra looked at me in amusement and suggested we go get food.

"Oh, that's a great idea. Who's buying!" I said with a grin. I couldn't hold in my laughter at the looks each of them gave.

"I'm kidding. Lunch is on me."

We each got a bowl of noodles and chowed down before we really got too talking.

"How's Jaune?" Saphron asked.

"He's good. Taking his training with Pyrrha seriously from what I've seen." I explained.

"Pyrrha? Pyrrha Nikos! My baby brother is training with the Mistrali champion!" Saphron said with excitement.

"Yup. Gotten a lot better since they started." I informed the eager sister. She looked proud.

"Speaking of getting better." I said quietly. I looked around to make sure no one was watching as I brought out a glowing orange ball. "I believe this belongs to you. Thanks for letting me borrow it by the way. Worked well." I held out my hand. Terra nodded.

"Anytime." She held out her hands, cupping them around the small fragment of her powers. At the same time, I used my magic to cover up the small power surge Terra had as the magic went into her body.

"How did it go with Raven?" She asked quietly.

I sighed. "Not great. We got into a fight unsurprisingly. Things were so much simpler when we helped to train Sarah…honestly…I miss those days." I said nostalgically. Saphron put a hand on my shoulder and pulled me out of the memories.

"That's natural to want to go back to the way things were…but after what happened with Sarah…the damage was done, and nothing could ever fix it." She said sympathetically.

"She never said WHY she killed Sarah. She only ever said Sarah was weak, but I know that's not why." I sighed. "Yang's gonna hate me if she ever finds out about the deal I made with Raven." I sighed again.

"No she won't. What you did…I don't necessarily agree…but it's for the best, especially since Yang would only be more hurt if she knew the whole truth." Terra said.

"You're right…as always." I joked with a small laugh. Terra gave a small smile.

"Wanna watch team JNPR?" I asked after a few minutes of silence. Saphron shook her head.

"Jaune and I haven't talked in a while. Besides, if he somehow saw me in the stands, after thinking I don't know he's here, it might distract him and get him hurt. I couldn't do that to him." She said. I nodded. "Besides, we should be getting back to Adrian anyway." She said softly. Terra nodded.

"It's been fun catching up with you." I said as I stood up.

"Same." Terra said as she pulled me in for a hug.

"Be careful." She whispered in my ear. I nodded against her shoulder and we parted ways. I went to find my team, who I knew were getting into the fairgrounds now.

I pretended not to notice when I saw Emerald using her semblance to steal something from Yang.

Damn that's an annoying semblance.

"Hey guys!" I said cheerfully. Emerald whipped around in surprise, her real hand inches away from Yang's pocket

"Whatcha been up too." I asked as I walked closer.

"Oh nothing. Emerald was just complementing our fight." Yang said with excitement.

"It was pretty awesome." I said lightly. Emerald nodded.

"Anyways, we're going to get food. Would your teammates care to join us?" I asked, mostly to keep up appearances.

"No. Merc is…Antisocial at best." She said while he was sniffing a boot. Gods above if I wasn't immortal and stupid, I might've fallen for the act. As it was I rolled my eyes.

"How did your fight go?" I asked. I knew who her fourth member was after some of my agents had managed to get ahold of the forged transcripts from Haven.

Which reminded me…I needed to pay Leo a visit.

The fourth was Neopolitan, the girl who saved roman and fought Yang using her illusionist semblance. Not the same as Emeralds, but quite powerful in its own way.

She was in disguise, clever since my team would know her on the spot.

"It went okay. We won." She said.

"Good. Who do you think is gonna be moving onto the doubles round?" I said. I was fishing for answers, but I didn't really care. The question was innocent enough.

"Probably me and Merc. What about you guys?" She asked. I nodded.

"Well, we decided as a team that Yang and Weiss would be going. Better balance that way." I answered. Yang and Weiss thankfully played their parts.

When all was said and done we began walking away.

"Alright, food. My treat." I said. They all looked at me like I was god.

I never really thought about it before, but I am technically their daughter.

Did that make me a demigoddess?

Oh well.

Everyone ordered, including me, thanks to my high metabolism. Yang and I got the regular order, Weiss got the regular as well but believed it had low salt, and Blake. Well…

Lets just say I think she was in love with her fish and noodles.

I coulda sworn I even saw her eyes sparkle a bit as drool fell out of her mouth. I handed the man the card, and it went through as expected.

Good thing I had a lot of money or all our meals would've made me go broke.

"Hey girls!" Someone called over just as we were about to start eating.

"Pyrrha!" I shouted as JNPR walked over.

"Mind if we join you?" Jaune asked.

"Of course. The more the merrier." I said. They all sat down and ordered their own food.

"Don't eat it too fast, wouldn't want you to puke in combat." I warned. Pyrrha nodded, but it seemed Nora didn't care.

To be fair, Nora has the stomach constitution of a rock. The rest of JNPR chowed down with us as Nora finished in less than a minute. Once we were done, everyone was satisfied. Nora even let out a loud belch! I chuckled to myself before I looked at Jaune.

"So, Ready for the fight?" I asked. Pyrrha nodded as Jaune put his head down. He had probably eaten to much. Well…If he felt the need during combat…It was a viable if gross strategy.

Nora answered with a long rant. Sorta. Honestly It was a bit concerning hearing the usual ball of hyper energy ranting in such a depressive manner. That was until she began to turn grey.

The intercom crackled to life, Oobleck calling for JNPR impatiently.

"Don't fret. We should be thankful we're fighting with actual guidelines instead of Grimm or murderers." Pyrrha said optimistically. It was always nice to see someone with a positive outlook like hers. Refreshing, even.

We all went to the coliseum together, but I barely watched JNPR fight, choosing instead to watch Cinder and her crew. It was easy to spot them when Cinder used a small portion of her powers for something. They were watching Pyrrha the entire time, studying her fighting style.

It wasn't a surprise when they ended up winning, and I was only aware of that when the crowd was cheering.

I didn't even stick around for team SSSN's fight, though I was aware my team was watching me as I left the arena.

"Leaving so soon? There's popcorn." I heard behind me as I was about to head to an airship.

"I'm starting to think you don't need that cane old man." I said with a small smile. Turning around, I saw Ozpin walking towards me.

"Sometimes. But mostly it's for show, and a keepsake from a long time ago." He explained.

"Yeah I understand. There are a lot of books and small trinkets I cant bear to part with either." I chuckled.

"So why were you leaving early?" He asked.

"Fights are fun, don't get me wrong, but I have a lot on my mind, namely, stopping the little infiltrators from doing anything serious." I said as we sat down on a bench.

"I know. It took me a long time to learn, but you can't bog yourself down on one objective." He said wisely.

"I know that Ozpin. Believe me I do. But this…This is big. The brothers told me to help you, and right now…I don't know how to help other then keep track of and end the threat. Ironwood has got the army covered. You're the leader, and I've got my information network. Qrow is good at long distance missions…And yet we're still no closer to understanding the big picture other than the end of the world." I finished with a small growl.

"Patience. Everything will work itself out in the end." He said calmingly. I relaxed a bit.

"Yeah. Speaking of Qrow, I know he brought Saph and Terra here, but where is he? Where's winter for that matter?" I asked. Ozpin looked at me.

"You know Qrow. He's probably at a bar or a brothel. As for Winter, she got called away on an important mission halfway through moving the Cotta-Arc family." He explained. I frowned.

"Didn't Ironwood know who his specialist was transporting?" I said with a bit of anger. Ozpin looked at me.

"This was a secret mission. He was handling something at the time, and the code you discovered at the CCT is some kind hacking code. Anyone who comes in contact with an infected point is liable to be hacked. I couldn't take the risk that his scroll was." He explained gravely.

"That's what that code does? I couldn't figure it out when I studied it?" I questioned.

"I only figured out when my desk flashed with the chess piece for a brief second. My scroll wasn't on it at the time so it wasn't infected. I have no way of knowing right now if James' has been infected." He explained.

"Great. That's perfect." I grumbled as we landed.

"We'll be meeting with James, Winter, Qrow, and Glynda later. I would like you to be there." He asked. I nodded in agreement.

"Good. We'll be meeting tonight." He answered as he walked off.

As I turned towards the docks to wait for the team, I saw Weiss waiting in front of some goofy looking airship with ribbons. Well…Schnee's do travel in style. When I saw winter get out, I sighed. Walking at a normal pace, I saw them begin talking. I was halfway there when Winter raised her hand to strike Weiss.

Hell no.

I growled and sped up, weaving in and out of people as I saw Winters hand begin to descend in slow motion.

Speeding up just a bit more, because any faster and I'd tear up the courtyard bricks, I reached them just in time. I stopped in front of Winter, her wrist in my hand and my head bent low with my hood covering my face. The caused by my running caught up with us and whipped my cloak around.

"Don't ever touch her like that again." I growled. It was one thing to get hit during sparring, sometimes it was used in discipline like a spanking, but too just hit someone, because you're frustrated?

That was unacceptable, and certainly more so because Weiss is my teammate.

"I don't know who you think you are, but unhand me this instant." She ordered.

"I'm not a soldier you can order around. Especially if you're about to hit my teammate and we're not in combat." I said slowly. "Got it." I looked her in the eye. She grit her teeth and was about to respond when Weiss jumped in.

"Ruby. Please unhand my sister. I'm fine." She said politely. I nodded.

"If you need me, just call." I said as I began walking away.

"So that's your leader?" I heard winter ask. I didn't here Weiss' response as I was too far away.

I went to the sparring ring, and began practicing on dummies, slashing at enemies long dead or very much alive.

I wasn't even a quarter of the way through my practice session when I heard my scroll go off. I huffed, and moved over.

I hadn't even broken a sweat.

The message was from Ozpin.

" _We're meeting earlier. Meet me in my office."_ Simple message, but I groaned in response. I grabbed my scythe, stowed it on my back, and headed for the clock tower.

When I finally got to the office, I cursed when I heard arguing.

"Lovely." I grumbled as the elevator doors opened.

"He was Drunk!" Winter exclaimed as I stepped through the threshold.

"He's always drunk!" Glynda fired back. Suddenly they all looked to Qrow who was taking a swig out of his flask. I laughed lightly at the situation, and everyone seemed to finally notice me.

"Well," I said as I walked forward. "As entertaining as it would've been to hear the buildup to that, can we please get down to business." I said, adopting a more serious approach to get them back on track instead of arguing for another hour.

"You're not supposed to be here." Winter said, her eye twitching just a little bit.

"No, Schnee. I think it best if you leave, actually." Ironwood ordered.

"No. She did a fantastic job of taking care of Terra. I say she can stay." I said. Ozpin nodded but James looked affronted.

"Think of her as another ally, James." Ozpon said softly.

"Very well. It appears I have no choice." He begrudgingly said. I looked at him.

"There's always a choice." I said, speaking from experience.

"Who are you anyway? Weiss mentioned you were her team leader but you're clearly more than that. So who are you really, and why are you here?" Winter said. I looked at her and smirked.

"You may not listen to Ruby Rose." I paused as I pulled my mask from its pocket dimension. "But you will listen to a maiden." I said once the mask was in place and my powers shooting out form the eye sockets. Too bad I forgot the Demon was still a wanted war criminal, as I suddenly found a pistol from Ironwoods holster aiming at me.

Oops.

"Did I forget to tell you." I said with a smirk.

Messing with Ironwood has become one of my favorite hobbies.


	21. Chapter 21: Twister

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Twenty-One: Twister**

Staring down the end of Ironwoods revolver just frustrated me.

"If I wanted a gun pointed at me, I'd have done it myself." I said calmly.

"Put the gun down James. There's no need for that here." Ozpin said. there was an undertone to his voice, but I didn't care.

"You failed to mention that the immortal maiden was a wanted war criminal, suspected in several _dozen_ murders against the Vytal convention accords, as well as the Demon of Atlas." Ironwood said tightly.

I had enough of this. Speeding right in front of him, I grabbed his cybernetic arm and pushed the barrel of his revolver to my forehead.

"Do it then. Try and kill me. You won't be the first or the last." I whispered as I stared into his eyes. His brow furrowed in anger before he quickly holstered his sidearm.

"Now that that's out of the way, let's get back to work." I said as I leaned on Ozpins desk.

"First off, thanks for getting Terra and Saphron here safe." I said. "Second…pass me that flask." I said with a small smile. He looked at me in confusion before handing it too me.

"Careful. That's strong stuff." He warned.

"My livers older than you boy, show it some respect." I said with a smirk before I took a sip.

Good whiskey.

"Now," I began once I was done. "Cinder and her little crew are already here, have been for a while. It's good that I taught Terra how to mask her Maiden powers or we'd all be in trouble. I know where she is all the time, but we can't do anything right now. She's constantly looking over her shoulder, paranoid but confident as hell that her plan is gonna work. We don't know what that plan is but I suspect it has something to do with the Vytal festival." I explained my theory.

"What makes you think this is their focus?" Glynda asked.

"I've had one of my best agents on them and their movements here. They've been poking around the arena, stealing schematics. The code they implanted in the CCT? I think it has something to do with gaining access to the internal computer hardware. For what though, I have no idea." I admitted as my shoulders slumped.

"From what my agent told me, they were pretty on edge right around the time Qrow got here. Probably afraid you might recognize them after saving Terra." I explained. Qrow nodded.

"Regardless, we should move in and take them out before they can enact any plan." Ironwood suggested.

"No. We might tip Salem off, and if we do, she might send all her little creations here instead." I reminded. I've heard whispers from my agents further east of some new Grimm. Not the Apathy, but something similar in body shape. No idea what it does." I said.

"Ruby's right. They don't know we're keeping an eye on them, watching their every move." Winter said, inputting into the conversation after listening. Smart woman.

"Right now, I believe that's our best course of action. If we keep them on edge, they might slip up, so it seems like your little intimidation tactic might pay off James." Ozpin said. James nodded and went to leave, Winter following after him.

Once everybody else left, Qrow wanting to catch up with Glynda, it was just Ozpin and I.

"Do you find it hard sometimes, trying not to think of them as children?" I asked. Ozpin looked at me.

"I try not to, but you're right. Sometimes its easier to see them as children. I try and remind myself however to not continue if I catch myself. If we begin to think of them as children to be punished or guided more often, then we start demeaning them, grinding them under our boot…like I once did." He said slowly. I nodded and hummed.

"Get some rest old man. I feel like the days will only get longer." I said as I walked onto the elevator.

"You as well." I heard as the doors slid closed.

I didn't want to see another fight, because I knew how most of them would go. Instead, I took a walk around the courtyard until I found myself in front of the statue.

"I miss you guys." I mumbled as I put a hand on the stone foot of Indigo. "I wish you were here. You could tell me what I need to do…look at me…I'm immortal and I still don't…know…everything…" I trailed off. Groaning, I smacked myself in the forehead.

"Of course, I do know someone who _does_ know everything. Too bad she's stuck in Haven. Man…She's gonna kill me when I wake her up." I grumbled.

"Who's gonna kill you?" I heard Weiss say behind me. I chuckled.

"Nobody. An old friend honestly." I said.

"Old is subjective for you." Weiss said with a smirk.

"Ha. Right. I was just thinking about some things." I said. Weiss looked at me, then to the statue.

"Anything in particular?" She asked carefully.

Damnit.

"I just…wish I could see them again. Ask for advice…tell them I miss them." I whispered as I looked at them. I felt a pair of arms wrap around me from behind.

"I'm sure wherever they are, that they're proud of you, they love you, and I'm sure they miss you too." She said. I nodded, sniffling a little bit.

"How was seeing your sister? I assume, since I didn't see the airship, that she left?" I asked. Weiss looked down.

"It was nice. We talked. She gave some good advice and tried to teach me how to summon…again." She admitted. I looked at her.

"Is that why you've never summoned? I always assumed you could, but it took a lot out of you to hold a summon for long periods of time or that you just weren't skilled enough to hold it during a fight." I said carefully. Weiss looked at me sharply.

"You knew my family could summon?" She asked.

"Of course. I helped your five times great grandfather learn how. Frost's mother was the first Schnee to properly summon. But she died before she could pass on the important information. The Schnee family didn't live in Mantle, before it became Atlas, and I knew them through a friend." I explained. "It took me years to figure out a way to get Frost too summon anything properly, but once he had the hang of it, he was fierce against the Grimm." I reminisced.

"Do you think you can help me?" Weiss asked quietly. "I've never been able to get it right, no matter how much I try."

I put a hand on her shoulder.

"Of course. You're my partner. If I can do anything to help you, I will." I said with a smile. "Lets go and see if we can't get something going. Hopefully you're better than you were at attempting to sense aura." I joked.

"Hey. I did my best." She defended. I laughed and poked her in the shoulder.

"I know. Besides, summoning is in your genes. Literally."

We walked to the sparring ring, joking back and forth about the Atlas elite. When we stopped in the center I told her to pull out her rapier.

"Show me what you got so far." I said. She pointed the rapier at the ground and a large summoning glyph came into existence, but almost as soon as it was there, it was gone.

"I think I know where your biggest problem is. You start to big. Think small. Like a bird." I suggested. She was able to sustain the new smaller glyph longer, and make it more stable, but it still faded.

"Weiss…I think your perfectionism is getting in the way. The summon doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to get the job done. Once you've gotten better at it, then work on the details." I suggested. She nodded, sweat on her brow which she wiped away, and began again.

We tried again and again, and each time we tweaked something. Eventually though…

"I did It!" She shouted as a small bird hopped around. It was only the basic shape, but it was still a summon.

"Great job!" I shouted as I hugged her tight. "Keep practicing and you'll be summoning anything." I said in a calmer tone

"Thank you, Ruby." Weiss said.

"I'll leave you too it, I gotta be headed to the coliseum." I said. Weiss perked up.

"Then wait. I'll come with you." She said as she put her rapier on her belt. I nodded and waited for her to wipe the sweat off her brow again.

" _The fight between Flynt Coal and Neon Katt versus Ruby Rose and Blake Belladonna will begin in Three! Two! One!"_ Port said into the megaphone. My heart started pumping faster immediately, the thrill of combat rushing through my veins.

I deployed my scythe as Blake went to take care of Flynt. Neon was fast, but I was faster. I didn't want the fight to end too quickly, so I held back on my speed.

She tried to rile me up, but since all of her information was wrong, nothing she said affected me.

It was at that point I was glad Yang wasn't in the fight. I had taught her how to win without her semblance, but annoying opponents could rile her up with enough jabs to her ego.

By the middle of the fight, I was thanking my ability to think ahead when I decided to lower my aura significantly. The amount of times Neon was able to get a hit on me was annoying, but someone would've noticed if my aura barely budged during the fight.

Picking up my speed just a bit, I was able to hook my scythe right under her roller blades, tripping her up and sending her flying. She managed to recover nicely, but it had cost her in aura. She growled and got back up, which I allowed, and we were off again. I heard the buzzer go of, and Oobleck announcing a double elimination. I whipped towards where Blake last was and saw her lying on the ground near a thermal vent.

Then I saw Flynt.

Shit. He blasted me off balance for a second, but I rolled and landed on my feet. Neon skated up to his left and they gave each other a look. I looked at Blake and she began scurrying off the stage, not wanting to be caught up in what I was about to do.

I stood up straight, and put crescent rose behind my back. Flynt and Neon looked confused but shook it off in favoring of beginning their attack.

I began mine the moment Neon moved.

They began moving in slow motion, my semblance flooding every part of my body. I poured my magic into my legs, allowing me to go faster than I normally would ever dare too, for good reason. I heard the bricks in the middle of the arena give way as I pushed off. My arms began pumping and in less than half a second, I was running in a circle around both Neon and Flynt. The dust and wind began picking up around us as I ran faster and faster. More was being pulled in from the arena and I had to dodge rocks and pieces of buildings, but what I was really hoping for, was already happening. The debris began pelting the duo team from Atlas, but the best was still yet to come.

I saw the moment on their faces when they realized what was happening. They both grabbed at their throats, clawing as they tried to breathe. The air was literally being pulled from their lungs as debris and dust pelted them. Their auras began plummeting like a rock.

Only a matter of time now.

 _Weiss' POV_

Sitting in the stands, watching Ruby's semblance being used to its fullest, was awe inspiring to say the least. Eventually, the dust at the base of the tornado she had formed obscured the red blur.

"Is she still in there?" I heard someone ask from behind me. It was Mercury, Emeralds teammate.

"Yeah. She's told me she very rarely ever does this, only when she has too. It hurts too much afterwards to keep going." I explained. Mercury watched with rapt attention, a little bit of fear on his face.

"Is she hitting them in the tornado?" He asked. I shook my head.

"No. She's letting the debris and lack of oxygen do the work for her." I said as I looked at Flynt and Neon's decreasing aura level.

The buzzer sounded and the tornado stopped eventually, but a red blur came out before it officially died, carrying the unconscious forms of Neon and Flynt. Yang was already running down to the arena, myself right behind her as Ruby collapsed onto her hands and knees.

Yang held Ruby's hair back as she began throwing up a mixture of vomit and blood. She had pushed her body hard.

"I'll be fine in an hour." She said as she tried to stand up.

"Stop. Relax for a minute. You earned the rest." I told her. She slumped over as Yang supported her.

"You two did a great job." She congratulated.

"Thanks." Blake said softly as she went to hug Ruby. I joined in, getting my skirt covered in soot in the process.

 _Yang's POV_

I felt it before I saw it. Ruby collapsed in my lap as I tried to push her to her feet. I caught her and swung her into my arms. Standing up, I carried her off the field. Blake and Weiss both looked pretty concerned, so I tried to put them at ease.

"Don't worry, once she wakes up she can bring her aura back up to normal and she'll be good as new." I said with a cheerful tone as I laid Ruby down on the coliseum infirmary bed. Flynt and Neon were there as well, almost out the door though since the doctor must've cleared them.

"Will she be okay?" Neon asked hesitantly.

"Yeah, she'll be fine. You two did really well out there by the way." I mentioned as I pulled a thin blanket over Ruby.

"We were no match. It's okay. You can say it because that fight was totally worth it." She smiled excitedly. "I was surprised when she just brushed off my verbal jabs at her." She admitted.

"Yeah. Ruby just lets stuff slide off her back. Nothing really fazes her." I said with a soft smile as I stroked my hand through her hair.

"Well you tell her I want a rematch if you're ever in Atlas." Neon said as she held the door open and Flynt walked out.

"Will do." I said. Then she left.

Ruby was asleep for the next few hours, cutting it really close to the start of the singles tournament. She woke up gasping for breath.

 _Ruby's POV_

When I woke up, I didn't know where I was. It took me a moment, but once I saw Weiss, Blake, and Yang, I knew I was safe at the very least.

"How long have I been out?" I asked.

"A few hours. The singles tournament will begin in another hour. How are you feeling?" Weiss asked. I nodded.

"Good. I feel fine." I answered as I got out of bed. I walked to the door no problem. "No dizziness and no headache so I think I can still fight." I explained. Yang and Weiss looked at each other while Blake just stared at me.

I knew what they were thinking.

"Its not up for debate. I'm competing in the singles." I said with a bit more force than I intended. Yang held her hands up.

"Okay. We're not saying you can't. Just…we don't think you should." She admitted hesitantly. I looked at her.

"I have to fight." I said. Weiss looked at me.

"Why do _you_ have to be the one to fight. You, the immortal with a stupid amount of aura, just drained most of it in a fight. Why can't Blake fight?"Weiss asked with a disapproving stare.

"I have to be the one to fight. There's something going on that I can't explain and I'm the only one who can fight what's coming." I explained, pleading with them to understand. Yang had a warning look in her eye, knowing where I was going with this.

"Please just trust me okay." I pleaded again. Thankfully Blake and Weiss nodded, albeit reluctantly.

"Thank you." I sighed. The intercom blared, asking for me to appear on the stage for the final showing of the teams chosen fighters.

"Guess that's my cue." I said. Yang pulled me into a hug suddenly, and then Weiss joined in, and then Blake.

"I love you all so much. I know I haven't said that before, but I do." I whispered. Yang laughed and I heard Weiss sniffle, laughing, I broke the group hug.

"Wish me luck?" I asked jokingly. They laughed and wished me luck before I jogged to the lift that would take up the chosen champions.

Penny, Pyrrha, Mercury, Sun, and several others I didn't know off the top of my head.

Once the rules were explained, the randomizer got to work.

It was me versus Mercury. I smirked when I looked at him. At least he had the decency to look afraid.

Or was it real fear?

The match began immediately once the other champions left.

Mercury was off like a shot, using his grieves to boost his speed.

Since I had fought him before, I was able to nail down his attacking patterns. Low sweep, high jump, mid kick, mid kick, sweep, high kick, punch, uppercut, haymaker. I blocked all of them without even using my semblance.

He started firing at me, trying to overpower me like Yang with his explosive ordnance. It didn't work as I dodged his shots. He could control them, which took me by surprise at first. I used Crescent rose to deflect the guided shots. He jumped up and came in low to try and sweep me off my feet while I was deflecting. I dodged that, but his knee came up and hit me in the jaw. I stumbled back holding my chin and I could just feel his smirk as he backed off for a moment.

I whipped my head towards him, glaring darkly as I took off much faster than he was expecting. I took his legs out from under him, hearing a metallic clank of his legs. Oh right. I forgot about that. Smirking, I saw him jump up off the ground before zipped back and forth, without any hope of him dodging, slashing every place I could until his aura was down to nothing.

" _that's the fight! Ruby Rose has won the match!"_ port declared over the speakers.

"Good match." I said as I began walking away. "but you're not your father. He would've been a better challenge." I taunted just loud enough for him to hear. The risk was great, but I had faith my plan would work. The shock on his face was evident, and then the anger came. It looked like he was running at me, but I felt a semblance flare up behind me. Nobody was allowed to be using their semblance while in the coliseum except competitors in the arena. Looking at the source of the flare, I found Emerald concentrating hard on me. I walked away, hearing 'Mercury' charge at me and jump into the air.

I smirked, looking Emerald dead in the eye's the entire time. Her eyes widened in shock, in the same way as Mercury, and I heard the noise of 'Mercury' behind me stop suddenly. Looking back, he was sitting on the ground with the same expression as Emerald.

"You'll have to try harder than that, children." I called out as I waked off the stage.


	22. Chapter 22: Truth and Consequences

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Twenty-Two: Truth and consequence**

I was in Ozpins office the next day, as there were only two solo competitions each day, and the one after my fight with Mercury didn't interest me. I had left, after taunting Mercury about his father. Probably cruel, but I needed Cinder to worry that somehow she had been caught or had slipped up. A worried and paranoid enemy was sloppy, and often made mistakes. IF Emerald and Mercury both went to Cinder saying that someone knew about their pasts and semblances, well she might think the worst.

Again, she had two choices, stay and risk death or capture, or run and risk punishment from Salem. I had a hunch she'd choose to stay and complete the mission, no matter the cost.

So here I was, telling Ozpin my official plan.

"That was risky." He said with a somewhat aggressive tone.

"I'm a thousand and fifteen years old, not some naïve fifteen-year-old. I knew it was risky, but they get closer and closer every day to completing their mission here. With this, we might be able to cause them to slip up." I explained again.

"And if they don't think the goal is worth the risk, if they run back to Salem rather than risk capture?" He asked. I cocked an eyebrow at his question.

"You're telling me you'd go running back to her saying you failed?" I asked sarcastically. He sighed. "You were married to her. Surely you've seen how she treats those that failed?"

"Fair point." He conceded with a sigh. Standing up from his desk, he walked over to the green tinted window, his hands crossed behind his back.

"It's fortunate you were able to bring Terra back from the brink." He said after a few minutes.

"Of course, but I fail to see how that's relevant at this moment." I said as I moved to stand by his side. I could feel him looking at me when I stopped.

"I had a…contingency plan for Terra, should the worst have happened." He said hesitantly.

"And what would that have been?" I asked, not looking at him.

"I was going to have Miss Nikos take the remaining half of Terra's power. Bind Terra and her together in order to keep Cinder from getting the whole thing." He explained. I looked at him briefly then laughed.

"What's so funny?" He questioned in amusement.

"You would've been fine. At least until Saphron got the powers and realized what had happened. Then she probably would've come after you." I explained. Ozpin looked at me with wide eyes.

"Honestly, did you really think Saphron isn't in Terra's every dream or waking thought in some way shape or form. Who do you think taught her how to make sure the powers went where she wanted them to go? I wasn't just doing a whole lot of nothing while in hiding. Of all the maidens I've taught, only a few have ever truly understood the full scope of their power." I explained. "Women like Terra for example. She understood from the very beginning how powerful she was. How dangerous the power is. When I felt her powers building, I took her to my cave high up in the mountains east of here. I told her to find someone, anyone she could think of, and hold on tight to that person's image. She settled on Saphron, her best friend back then. I told her the most important lesson was that a maiden's responsibility was to fight. She didn't want to do that so I told her to master her powers for Saphron, to protect her should the worst happen." I explained. "As long as you have someone to protect, to keep safe, the maiden powers have a higher chance of seeking out that person. The magic is sentient like that." I finished. Ozpin looked at me with awe.

"So, since Terra loves Saphron so deeply, the maiden powers would've gone to her, to protect the person Terra loves most? The same for any maiden?" He questioned.

"Yes. You were almost correct in thinking that it transfers to the last person in the Maidens thoughts. If the maiden has no one to protect or love, as your faction was prone to telling the maidens to avoid, the powers transfer to the killer." I explained. Ozpin looked at a loss for words.

"You didn't know. It's okay. The fault also lies with me as I told them to keep it secret. That way, it would keep the one's they love secret. As much as possible anyway." I shrugged.

"I had no idea." He whispered.

"Like I said, it's not your fault." I said as I began walking to the elevator.

"Just between you and me though, Pyrrha would've been a fine choice." I said as the elevator doors closed.

Speaking of Pyrrha, she might be fighting today. Penny was also here so she might be fighting as well.

Getting into the coliseum, I found my team saving me a seat.

"Thanks girls." I said as I sat down.

"No problem Rubes." Yang said as the randomizer began choosing two fighters. I wasn't paying attention to that since I couldn't sense Cinders maiden power anywhere nearby. It wasn't possible for her to have learned to suppress her powers. I looked just in case, but all I found was Emerald sitting in her chair. Not even Mercury was nearby.

"Shit." I swore as I looked around at high speed using my semblance. He was nowhere to be seen until I saw him ducking into one of the maintenance exits.

"I'll be back. Gotta get some popcorn." I said as I kept my eye on him. Yang looked at me excitedly.

"Oh! Get me some too?" She asked.

"Of course!" I said with a laugh. Once I'm done dealing with this situation, I thought to myself. She nodded and I jogged to where Mercury had gone in. Rounding a corner, I saw Mercury coming out of a camera room.

"How do you think this is going to end child. Your father couldn't even beat me." I said calmly. He bared his teeth at me, growling like an animal.

"Well I beat my father! Killed him!" He shouted.

"So much anger for such an insignificant spec of dust." I said as I looked at my nails.

" _The randomization is complete. Our next fighters will be Penny Polendina of Atlas Versus Pyrrha Nikos!"_ Port declared over the speakers. I chuckled in realization.

"So, you hacked the CCT to gain control over the Vytal coliseums central computers so you could rig the randomization. Smart." I offered. He smirked.

"Metal versus polarity. Not a great matchup." He said smugly. I had no time to even think how he had come by that information.

"Tsk tsk Mercury. You won't be around to see the fight." I said as I charged at him too quick for him to even react. I grabbed him by the throat and slammed him head first into the concrete.

"You know, in our fights, I was holding back." He admitted as he kicked his legs up to try and break loose. I whipped out my hidden dagger and planted the blade firmly in his thigh. He screamed as the blade slipped between his femoral and pelvic bones, dislocating the leg.

"So was I." I admitted as I flared my maiden powers to their fullest. The flames forming large orange and silver wings. I picked him up and slammed him into the ground with everything I had, shattering his aura and knocking him unconscious. Pulling out my scroll, I called Qrow.

"I got one unconscious Mercury. Don't worry about that though, focus on keeping Terra and her family safe." I said before I hung up. I looked at the ground to the unconscious grey-haired boy at my feet. Using my aura on him so he wouldn't bleed to death, I healed the wound, but not his hip. He wouldn't be walking for a while anyway.

Running out to the arena, I saw Pyrrha and Penny going at it, fighting each other with everything they had.

I saw, more than I felt it. Pyrrha's eyes widening in shock and fear. I yelled for her as I ran down to the arena, so close to the protective field I almost didn't see it.

"Whatever you're seeing isn't real! Snap out of it!" I shouted. But Pyrrha didn't hear me, whether due to the crowd cheering, Emerald's semblance blocking it, or some stress related reason.

"Damnit!" I cursed as I looked at Emerald through the dome. She was focusing solely on Pyrrha.

"Screw it." I said ran up the stairs behind me. Running back down for a running start, I jumped onto the dome. It all happened in slow motion. Penny launched her swords at Pyrrha just as I reached the top of the dome. I jumped up, my dagger still in my hand, and tossed it, infusing my arm with my semblance for maximum power. The dagger flew through the air at breakneck speeds, much faster than even most bullets fired out of Yang's gauntlets. It hit so hard, it slipped through the aura around Emerald before she even had a chance to react. When it pierced her thigh, she let out a blood curdling scream. Resuming my speed run, I launched myself at her, tackling her to the ground as she tried to escape. I heard several people gasp around me. I didn't care. I looked back behind me to make sure Penny was okay, and to my surprise, she was still fighting like nothing had even happened. I turned back around and saw Emerald holding a phone, her thumb on the send button.

Some kind of backup plan? Not on my watch. In my haste, I wasn't paying attention enough, and I didn't realize that Emerald was limping away. As I tackled her illusion, it dissipated, and I saw the real Emerald press the real send button.

 _Cinder's POV_

" _Plan B!"_ the text read. No other information. Growling to myself, I hit the button on my scroll for plan b.

What a beautiful night for fireworks.

 _Ruby's POV_

An explosion, multiple explosions, rocked the coliseum. Fireballs shot dozens of feet into the air, only to be stopped by the protective barrier. Pieces of people and debris were turned into shrapnel as the flames and shockwave's tore everything apart. The center of the arena appeared untouched, protected by the barrier. Penny and Pyrrha could only watch in horror as events unfolded around them, helpless to do anything.

People were screaming all around me in slow motion as I ran to where my team had been sitting. When I got there, only Blake and Weiss were still in their seats, too shocked to move.

"Where's Yang!" I shouted as someone ran by screaming.

"She went looking for you. Said you were taking to long!" Blake shouted in shock, not able to take her eyes off of the people who had been launched at the barrier, only to splat once they met it.

"Get outta here! Help the civilians! We'll catch up!" I ordered as I ran off.

Running through the coliseum at impossible speeds, I found Yang stuck, struggling under debris that had fallen on top of her.

"Yang!" I shouted

"Ruby!" Yang shouted back. I skidded to a stop and bent down, getting my hands under the debris.

"Come on!" I shouted as I strained against the weight of the metal. An explosion went off, likely from damage caused by the initial explosions.

"Just go! People are panicking and it's gonna bring the grimm!" She shouted. Almost to prove her right, a giant nevermore landed on the arena, screeching loudly.

"No! I'm not leaving you!" I shouted back in anger. Frustrated, I activated my Maiden powers, pouring all the energy into my hands. Grabbing hold of two support beams, I began heating them up, causing them to melt in my hands. I screamed as I felt the melting steel begin to drip ono my hands. Activating my Silver eyed magic, I augmented the strength of my aura, and they began healing as quickly as they were being injured. Pushing again, I melted straight through two support beams keeping Yang pinned. I pulled her out quickly, as soon as she was free the debris collapsing right where she had been.

I let go of my power and felt it fade. The third degree burns on my hands were healing, so I turned to Yang.

"We gotta get outta here. This whole coliseum is falling apart!"

" _This is what happens when you put your faith in humans. Humans can't protect you. They're weak. The faunus will inherit Remnant!"_ I heard what sounded like Cinder on the intact speakers.

She was pinning the blame on the White Fang!

" _Barriers failing!"_ A robotic voice called out not soon after.

"What do we do Ruby!" Yang called out. Around the arena, I looked and saw Jaune running for Pyrrha and Penny.

"We need our weapons first." I answered, watching as the nevermore broke through the barrier and sending Jaune and Pyrrha flying. Penny stood her ground since she was heavy enough. The nevermore Cawed but Penny just stood her ground.

I called my locker, watching as Penny just kept standing there…combat ready

"Get outta there!" I shouted. Her swords spun up, but a nevermore was completely different from a bullhead. She couldn't use her laser cannon in her either since it would likely be the hit needed to knock the coliseum out of the sky. The nevermore's feathers were thick, blocking Penny's swords from doing any real damage.

The nevermore launched its feathers, hundreds of them, at the three still in the arena. Penny's swords blocked most of them, and what wasn't blocked was stopped by Pyrrha, all but one. Charging forward, I jumped in front of Pyrrha before a feather could skewer her.

"Ruby?" She asked. Shock in her voice as the no doubt gruesome scene before her finally registered in her mind. I fell to my knees in pain, the feather in my chest weighing me down. Taking a moment to breathe, I pulled it out like it didn't even matter. I would have to answer a lot of questions after this, but there wasn't time for secrets right now. Holding the feather in my hand, I looked at the giant nevermore.

"You leave my friends alone you ugly bastard!" I shouted as I pointed the feather at the giant Grimms chest, launching it as hard as I could. It hit the bird in the wing, going in and out. I felt the hole in my chest heal until it was closed. Unfortunately, I didn't think about how it would look when I turned around.

"Umm…Ruby?" Pyrrha said as she pointed to her own chest with wide eyes. I looked down and saw that, while my chest no longer had a hole in it, my shirt still did, exposing my breasts to everyone. Pyrrha tore off her sash and handed it to me, which I tied around myself as quickly as possible.

"Thanks." I said. Pyrrha nodded and I was about to say something when the Nevermore recovered.

"Piss off!" I shouted as I charged the Nevermore, jumping into the air and angling myself so that my whole bodyweight was behind my fist. Now, I don't know what I expected to happen, but I really should've expected when I only managed to knock the giant back a little bit.

I only seemed to just make it mad.

I ran back to Pyrrha, Jaune, and Penny. The Nevermore jumped into the air, flying at us, ready to kill the three behind me.

Suddenly, the giant Grimm was absolutely destroyed by dozens of rocket lockers landing on its back and wings.

"Well that was awesome." I muttered to myself as everyone still in the arena grabbed their weapons.

Teams ABRN, JNPR, half of FNKI, SSSN, and CFVY.

Those grimm weren't even gonna know what hit em' I thought with a sadistic smirk. Working together, we all made short work of the Nevermore when it came back.

"What's the plan, Ruby?" Jaune asked.

"We make sure nobody else gets hurt or killed. We take care of the Grimm, help the civilians, and make sure whoever did this pays." I said aggressively. I saw everyone nod in agreement.

"They came here. Attacked our homes. Hurt our friends. They brought the Grimm into the city we love, the School we love! So, I say we do what were trained to do. I say we fight with everything we've got!" I shouted at the top of my lungs as I went to my locker, pulling out Crescent rose.

"Yeah!" Everyone shouted. They readied their weapons when a roar was heard, several Griffon's flying into the damaged coliseum.

"Griffons. Anyone got any ideas?" Neptune asked as he readied his trident.

"Yeah. We form a circl-" I was cut off when I Griffon landed, roaring until it got cut off because it had been shot. Port was walking into the arena with Oobleck by his side.

"Students. I think it's time for you to leave." He ordered. Him and Oobleck? Against this many Griffons? I had to object.

"But yo-" I was cut off again.

"Miss Rose. Today will go down in Remnants history, and while I know you will…I'd prefer other students be around as well to tell the tale as well. For Accuracies sake." Oobleck said. I looked at him in surprise with wide silver eyes.

"How did you…" trailed off.

"What can I say, I know my history." He said with a small smile.

"There's too many Griffon. Even for you." I tried to reason with them.

"Yes. But if it gives you time to lead these children to safety, then I'll gladly lay down my life." Oobleck said.

The Grimm began attacking, but I still tried to convince them to come with us.

Both Oobleck and Port shook their heads.

"Go!" They shouted in unison. "GO!"

Wiping tears out of my eyes, I nodded slowly and rounded everyone up.

"Let's go!" I shouted. Everyone nodded, having not heard the conversation between the three of us. I gave them one final glance before I ran down the tunnel towards the landing pads and evacuation zones.

When we all exited the tunnel, Yang immediately found Blake and Weiss.

"Why are you still here!" I shouted over the chaos.

"We've been trying to keep everything orderly, making sure the loading process goes smoothly." Blake answered.

"Good. We're going down into-" I was going to say Vale, but bullheads carrying Grimm began dropping them off on the loading platform.

"Son of a bitch!" I shouted as several dozen Grimm flooded the dock.

Suddenly, the androids from Atlas opened fire.

About time.

Ironwood even joined in on the fighting. His cybernetics granted him strength, but it was interesting to see that they didn't seem to hamper his fighting in anyway. He dispatched two beowolves in under a minute.

"Good to see your droids were useful after all." I said as he walked to one of his ships.

"What will you be doing?" I asked.

"The grimm have overrun the city and Beacon. Someone has stolen one of my warships and gained control over the skies. I intend to take it back." He answered. Sun stepped forward.

"What should we do?" He asked desperately.

"Stay and fight or run. Nobody will fault you if you leave." He said as he turned around and walked onto his ship.

"We're gonna split up into our teams. Team RWBY will head to Beacon with CFVY and SSSN will head to Vale with ABRN. JNPR, protect any civilians still stuck at Beacon from Grimm." I ordered. Everyone nodded, and I felt every bit like the General I was during the revolution.

"Adam will likely be here." I murmured to Blake as we loaded into an airship. She nodded slowly.

"If he is I'll take care of it." She said. I put my hand on her shoulder.

"No. I'm ordering you to run if you see him. I don't care what happens. If he finds you with the team though, with everyone and you have no other options, you hit him with everything you got." I ordered

We were flying towards Vale when I saw Ironwoods ship go down in a ball of flames. Without him, there was nobody to take back manual control and shut down all the drones.

Unless…

Running up to the entrance platform on the airship, I heard Sun calling me but there was no time to lose.

Activating my maiden powers, I used my magic to give them a small boost. With flames coming out of my eyes I gathered as much power as I could into my hand. Extending it up into the sky, I formed a massive storm, no doubt telling Cinder I was definitely here if she didn't already know. Lightning struck my hand and I redirected it at Ironwoods massive airship.

This time the lightning hit, arcing across the entire ship. The rear engines blew out, and several smaller explosions vented out the sides, likely the ammunition storage.

There was one escape pod I saw leaving.

"What the hell was that!" I heard from behind me. I turned around, my eyes still wreathed in glowing silvery flames. There was no explaining this away.

"The legends you heard about growing up were all based in truth. The silver eyed warriors, the tale of the two brothers, and the tale of the four seasons. I am the silver eyed maiden of Fall." I said calmly.

"If you're a silver eyed warrior, then why don't you just use your powers to wipe out all the Grimm?" Pyrrha asked desperately. Leave it to her to be well versed in many legends. I shook my head sadly.

"They don't work like that. I have to see the Grimm in order for it too work, and even then, some Grimm are so powerful it would only freeze them or slow them down." I explained sadly. "I have an idea though. My team will still be heading to beacon, but I'll head to the tower. That way, it should wipe out most of the Grimm there. We can join you in Vale once we're done." I explained the hasty plan. Everyone nodded.

"Now let's go!" I said as we landed. Teams RWBY, CFVY, and JNPR all charged out of the airship. We were halfway to beacon when I felt the ground shaking.

Coming from Mountain Glenn.

"Please no." I whispered with wide eyes. "Please gods no." I pleaded.

It fell on deaf ears.

All the negativity, the fear, the anger, the panic, was a meal fit for a king.

And none were king like the Wyvern.


	23. Chapter 23: Killers and Thieves

**I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.**

 **Daughter of the Gods**

 **Chapter Twenty-three: Killers and thieves**

The Wyvern was Awake. And that spelled trouble for everyone. I could see pieces falling off its body, stone from the last time I had frozen him…but back then, I had help. The next closest silver eyed warrior was in a town over twenty miles away. There was no time.

"What the hell is that thing!" Blake shouted.

"That's a Wyvern. They're so powerful they can make Grimm spawn pools." I explained in a dark tone, watching as it grew closer, more stuff that definitely wasn't stone falling off.

"Oh gods." I heard Yang whisper in fear.

"I need you three to cover down here. I'm going up the tower to see if I can't slow it down." I ordered. "It's gonna be a minute because I need this thing to be in my silver light as much as possible. Right now, it's too far off…I need it to be closer." I said. They nodded as they went towards the courtyard, following after CFVY.

Breathing, I pulled out my mask and relic. No doubt the Wyvern would sense the power and come to me, hopefully staying away from the other students. I was about to pull my hand out of the pocket dimension when it brushed against something.

My armor from the great war.

Looking at the Wyvern, I sighed. I felt Cinders power as well near Beacon. Ozpin was in danger. Even a maiden at half strength could still overpower him with enough skill. His had gotten weaker over the years, from too much use or not enough it was unclear, but he was weaker. Weak enough to be beaten by a younger, powerful, and skilled woman like Cinder.

"Shit." I grunted as I grimaced, pulling my armor free from the pocket dimension.

The chest plate came first. A large burning rose stamped into the Mistralian steel. Tying both the frnt and the back together, I slipped my cloak back on. The legs came next, the thighs and knees bare to keep it as light as possible. The calves were encased in armor quickly. Shoulder pads came next, keeping the cloak secure to my body, the hood falling over the back. I slipped on my gauntlets, a design that Yang's were based off of, but much less bulky since it didn't incorporate the shotguns. The mask I put on last, finishing the look. Letting my Maiden powers flow naturally, the empty sockets were engulfed in flames.

The Eternal Reaper returns.

Running forward towards the tower, I pulled out my scythe, slashing through everything in my way, cutting down a hundred Grimm in one pass. I heard Yang, Weiss, and Blake shout something, but I couldn't hear it because of the wind rushing past my ears.

 _Yangs POV_

Ruby flew past us towards the tower, taking down a hundred Grimm before she disappeared.

"You get em' Rubes!" I shouted. Blake and Weiss shouting something similar. Looking around for a second, I saw Nora and Ren looking at my sister with fear in their eyes. I couldn't ask them because the Grimm surrounded us a second later though, and it was right back to work. Blasting off shots left and right, destroying anything in my path. I took a few hits, but refrained from using my semblance, just like Ruby had taught me.

The Wyvern circled around the campus courtyard, dropping pools of whatever that was causing the Grimm to spawn. Eventually our luck had to run out when an Alpha beowolf spawned.

"Blake!" I shouted, pointing at it. She nodded and went to chase after it. Weiss and I handled the Grimm and Androids, it was easy once we figured out that the pools could be destroyed like every other Grimm, but fire was most effective. Eventually several Ursai joined the fight, standing on the twisted steel of the paladins that went offline when Ironwoods ship went down, but Blake still hadn't returned.

"Think you and CFVY can handle the Ursai?" I asked. Weiss nodded and I ran to find Blake.

It didn't take long, not when I saw her on top of the cafeteria, being chased by a guy in a mask.

"Stop running like a coward Blake!" He shouted. Blake looked like she was running for her life. Using my gauntlets, I shot myself up to her, jumping in between Blake and the mystery man.

"Yang?!" Blake shouted.

"You don't hurt my friends." I growled. The man just laughed.

"And who would this be my love? A pathetic excuse for a teammate?" He taunted. I stood my ground, keeping silent.

"I'll enjoy killing her." He said menacingly, drawing his sword. He launched himself forward, and the dance began. Immediately I noticed that he overused his semblance. The second he blocked my first punch with his sword, he used the power against me, knocking me back and tearing into Ember's reloading mechanism.

So, his semblance was like mine.

'Avoid hitting the sword' I thought over and over again. He was fast, but not as fast as Ruby or that multicolored girl. He blocked a lot of my punches, but I blocked a lot of his hits as well, the only difference, he kept using his semblance.

He messed up and knew it when his blade got stuck in Ember Celica's blade breaker. A twist, and the blade was wrenched free of his hand. Flaring my semblance, I punched him with everything he had hit me with. I heard several bones breaking, mostly in his chest, and he went flying. He only stopped when he met the short wall on the roof of the cafeteria.

He didn't get back up.

 _Ruby's POV_

When I made it up the stair, since the elevator had been destroyed, I saw Cinder standing over Ozpin.

A broken and bloody Ozpin.

"Step away from him." I growled. She turned, her weakened flames wreathing her eyes.

"Why? We could rule over everything, you and I, but men like him, who hold power and horde it ruthlessly, keep us that way. We could be goddesses to these people. With you fighting by my side, we'd be unstoppable." She tried appealing to my ego. My sense of power.

"What would you know of power. You're a pawn in a much larger game. Besides, being a god isn't all it's cracked up to be." I answered. That only seemed to make her mad.

"Then you don't deserve your power." She growled, the flames burning a little brighter.

"Maybe not, but at least I didn't attack an innocent woman to get mine." I answered back, getting into a fighting stance. She growled again.

"Fine then, have it your way." She said, the Grimm dragon screeching in the distance.

Oh shit, maybe Salem had gotten to it.

She formed twin swords, and I pulled out destruction before shifting Crescent rose into her war scythe form, the blade straightening out in line with the polearm. I ran straight at her, unfortunately not able to use my semblance fully in this enclosed space. Ozpin looked at me in worry.

He was barely clinging onto life.

I slashed across her legs with crescent rose before twisting around and slashing with Destruction. She flared her powers, barely stopping Crescent from taking her head off when I brought her up. She threw a fireball at me, pushing me back as the flames came near my fames. Growling, I formed a storm over head and directed lightning at her so I could gain some breathing room for a moment.

Fine. If she was gonna fight dirty, so be it. Putting crescent on my back once she was folded up, I formed another sword in my hand. Now I could move much faster and attack just as fast.

Running to the side, I used my semblance to twist around her, burying my flaming sword into her shoulder. It only stopped once it met bone.

She healed quickly as I landed on my feet behind her.

Even at half strength, she was still powerful, only using her maiden powers to aument the skills she already had. Whoever had taught her, since it wasn't Salem, had done well.

"I didn't know when we first fought, but once Mercury told me that you were a maiden it all made sense, Ruby Rose." She paused, panting slightly while I just stood there motionless. "Once I kill you, I'll kill your entire family. Qrow, your father, Yang. They'll all burn." She taunted as fireballs formed in her palms.

"Oh child you still don't understand." I said chuckling. She launched a fire ball at me.

"What's so funny!" She yelled as I batted the fireball to the side.

"I am everything you could never be. My name isn't Ruby Rose, that's merely an alias. My real name is Scarlett Rose. I am the Scarlett Death, the Eternal Reaper, the Demon of Atlas. My stories have given parents and children alike nightmares for generations. I was destroying armies long before you were even an idea to your parents. I have had enough of your petty bullshit games, you STUPD CHILD!" I roared in her face as I used my semblance to appear in front of her. Her eyes widened and she cowered under the face of death.

"I told you child. You don't know what you're messing with." I said as buried my blade in her stomach and forced my palm to her face. She screamed as the power of Summer was being ripped from her body. I wasn't able to finish, again, when the Wyvern crashed into the tower. Ozpin was buried in rubble and Cinder and I were separated.

"Will. You. Just. DIE!" I shouted as I accessed my silver eyed magic. The Wyvern was frozen in an instant. I didn't have enough power in me to kill it, not by myself. Cinder screamed in pain as my magic tore through her body. When they light faded, the city of Vale was quiet. I fell to my knees, draining most of my aura to destroy the Wyvern. Cinder was laying on the ground, the entire right side of her body burned beyond saving.

"I warned you." I said as I walked up to her and drained her of the last of her stolen magic. Turning away, I ignored her pathetic pleading for help. Picking up Ozpin, I carefully managed to get him down the tower.

His body was getting weaker by the second. I could feel it.

"I fear…this is far from over Ruby." He said quietly.

"Save your strength old man. Help's on the way." I said.

"I'm old Ruby, not stupid. There's nothing that can help me. I'll reincarnate though. I can feel it happening." He whispered before going into a coughing fit. I held his hand gently. I was aware that we were being watched, the students gathering around us.

"I'm sorry I couldn't stop her in time." I whispered.

"You did everything you could. No one will fault you for this." He said. I could feel him getting weaker by the second. I heard a bird flapping, and suddenly Qrow was here. I saw Yang, and realized she must have called him here.

"Is he-" I nodded before he could finish.

"I'm sorry Qrow. For everything." Ozpin admitted. Qrow looked shocked, but before he could say anything, Ozpins grip on my hand went slack, his head falling back into the dirt.

A light started glowing on his face before it slipped out between his lips. Qrow forced the crowd back as the light began moving before disappearing.

"See ya later old man." I whispered with a watery smile. Turnign around, I left Ozpins body there, I knew Qrow would take care of it, I just wanted to be with my team.

Cleaning up Vale took days. Grimm were popping up everywhere before it seemed like we were doing anything. Eventually, communication got better. Atlas stuck around to help, mostly cause I convinced Ironwood it would make Atlas look good if they were seen helping clean up the mess some of the Androids had made before I shut down the central control ship.

Unfortunately, Beacon wasn't so lucky. The Wyvern was still attracting more Grimm by the day and I could only do so much. Using my silver eye magic exhausted me, drained most of my aura and power. I had to wait a few more days before I could go back into Beacon grounds.

I was the only one allowed anyway.

Weiss, Yang, and Blake all helped clear the city and even volunteered to help clear beacon before I told them it was a lost cause for now.

When Jaques came to Vale on a bullhead, Weiss had to fight her father on more than one occasion but eventually he gave up trying to take her home.

When Blake got a call, she almost didn't answer it until I told her she should.

"Hey mom. Hey dad." She sighed as she walked somewhere private to talk.

Yang and her father worked together once he arrived, in the normal sense this time, charging through the Grimm like they were tissue paper

Several days later and I was strong enough to use my full semblance. Running through the ruins was hard, the bodies of students that hadn't been able to evacuate laid rotting alongside the ones who had defended them to the bitter end. Whole teams laid together in some places.

I pushed through though, doing my best not to stop and cry.

I kept thinking over and over again why I didn't just kill Cinder and her lackies when I had the chance. Why didn't I do more.

I didn't realize I was already in the vault when I snapped out of my thoughts.

Thankfully Cinder hadn't come down here, I had no idea if her half powers would've been enough to open the massive doors. I know Ozpin had said that only the specific Maiden could open their vault, but I knew with enough power one could open the others. Whether Cinder had enough was unknown.

The vault doors reacted to my touch and swung open easily.

It was beautiful inside, it looked very much like the forever fall forest, though the leaves had a deeper orange tint to them, red in some cases. Walking through the doors, I looked forward and saw a dais.

Empty.

"No. No no no no!" I shouted as I ran to it. There was nothing here. The crown was gone, and with it, the power choice. Whoever had it, if it was Cinder, could bend anyone to her will.

"NO!" I screamed into the vault. It echoed everywhere as my maiden powers reacted to the anger, flames shooting out of my hands.

The forest was burning down around me. I seethed.

"I should've killed that bitch when I had the chance!" I cursed at myself, at Cinder, at Ozpin, at Salem.

Life was so much simpler when I was living in my cave, far away from the world.

I sank to my knees and punched the dirt on the vault floor.

Then I heard a crack.

Looking up, I saw a split in the wood dais. It was hollow!

Reaching my hand inside, I felt a folded note.

" _Ruby,_

 _If you're reading this, It means I'm dead and either Cinder succeeded and tried to steal the relic using the power of her magic to break into the vault, or she lost, and Beacon with her was destroyed. The Relic has been hidden safely as a precaution, not even Salem can find it so you should rest easy though I know you won't. Find my next incarnation. They can tell you where I've hidden the crown._

- _Ozpin_

 _PS- If Qrow hasn't already taken my cane, please, give it to my next incarnation."_

"Clever, old man." I said aloud as I stood up and walked out of the vault, closing it with my fire before leaving it behind in a cloud of dust.

Back in my hut on patch, I called up a friend.

"Hey Flora. I need you to come to Vale for a while." I said.

" _Why? I heard what happened. The news said it was pretty much cleared?"_ She asked.

"There's still a Wyvern on top of the tower. It's not dead so it keeps drawing in more Grimm." I explained.

" _Gods, Ruby. I don't have half the power you do. Why do you think I can do anything?"_ Flora was always pretty hard on herself.

"Because, doofus, I'll need someone here in Vale keeping an eye on it while I'm traveling." I said with a small chuckle.

" _Is it time, are you going after her?"_ She questioned excitedly.

"Not her per say, but our paths will cross at some point. I'm going to Haven, since it's the most likely target based off the data we found in Cinder's dorm room." I explained.

" _Ah. I'll be in Vale in a few days."_ She responded before hanging up.

"So is Flora really coming?" Yang asked excitedly.

"Yes, but you won't have long to catch up. Like I said, Haven is the most likely next target, and since they failed to accomplish their goals here, they'll likely hit Haven with everything they got." I explained. Yang nodded.

"Come on," I said standing up. "It's time to go meet up with Everyone." I said as I held out my hand. Yang took it, and I pulled her off the floor of my hut.

We walked through the forest, talking about everything and nothing. We met up with Blake, Weiss, and all of JNPR outside a small deli on patch. We had all agreed to meet here and walk to Haven together, wanting to stay off the radar since our teams had become famous for the 'Defense of Vale.'

"It's good to see you. Vale should be taken care of in a few days once Flora gets here." I said.

"Good. With her watching over the Wyvern for you, it'll be much easier to slip away." Pyrrha said. "I still can't believe those stories are true though. The maidens, the silver eyed warriors, the two brothers, the dark witch." She finished in a slightly awed tone.

"Most of them are true, but not everything about them is." I reminded her. She nodded.

"So can you really destroy any Grimm with just a look? You're really immortal?" Nora asked excitedly.

"As you can see by the Wyvern, no. Most Grimm though, totally. And yes, I am." I answered with a smirk.

"So there's really another immortal out there, Ozpin reincarnates though you don't know how long that takes, and the relics are all powerful aspects of life?

"Yes, yes, and yes." It was weird being so open about my powers and long life, about the things that had become part of my life.

Speaking of powers, Qrow had done his job and secured Terra, Saphron, and Adrian transport out of the city and back to their home in Argus before everything got really bad.

Unfortunately, that left me with one and a half separate maiden powers. I've felt like I was burning up on the inside ever since.

Two separate maiden powers were never meant to exist in the same body.

A power-hungry girl had learned that the hard way when she burst into flames that consumed every part of her body after she stole the powers of summer and killed Spring. It wasn't pretty.

I've been fighting the pain ever since.

"Is everyone ready too leave by the way?" I asked. They all nodded.

"We're all good to go." Ren said with a small smile.

"Good. We'll need to leave fast as soon as Flora gets here. Of course, for Yang, you'll have a minute to talk.

Two days later, I was waiting by a private dock when an airship landed. A woman with green hair and silver eyes, dressed in a green and pink shirt and pants combo stepped off the platform. I pulled her in for a hug.

"Good to see you Flora." I said in her ear. Yang was impatiently waiting for her turn. When we separated, I barely got away before Yang flew through the air and tackled Flora to the ground.

"It's so good to see you!" Yang squealed. I chuckled, as did JNPR with Weiss and Blake, at Yang's antics.

"It's only been a year firecracker, you'd think it was a decade or something." Flora joked with a grin. Yang rolled her eyes.

"You're like the cool aunt. Of course I missed you." Yang said with a smile before hugging her again.

"I missed you too, firecracker. Once this is all over, then we'll have some proper time to catch up, I promise." Flora said holding up her pinky. Wow she really meant it if she was pinky promising.

I hated to do it, but I looked at my scroll and announced we would be late and horribly behind schedule if we didn't move soon. Yang looked at Flora and hugged her again before saying goodbye.

"Goodluck." I said as I gave her my own hug goodbye.

"Thanks. Give em' hell for me will ya. For me and for my brother." She said seriously.

"I will." I promised, not looking away from her as I swore.

We parted ways, and I ran to catch up with everyone who had started walking away, waving at Flora as she got smaller in the distance.

 **AN: So that's the end of part one. I have no set schedule on when Part two will begin but it will be after the twisted steel sequel is well underway. Supergirl Lost will be finished before I start posting the sequel to the story.**

 **I wanna give a huge thank you to everyone who read this. This was my second ever story and I wasn't sure how well it would be received. Happy to say it was received pretty well. Thanks to those who commented and PM'd me with good ideas and advice when I felt stuck or needed inspiration.**

 **Anyways…This is officially the end of Daughter of the Gods, Part one anyway, and the journey has been fun. I'll see you in the next one or my other stories, and I'll post when the sequel is up here when it's ready.**

 **Or you could just find it under its name, The Eternal Reaper.**

 ***hint hint: The changes made to the fall of beacon in this chapter have pretty big ramifications later on. Everyone being together is just the beginning. ***


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